When Vampires Bite
by StarLion
Summary: Follow on to The Last Pack. Sora joins Riku as he tells another side to the story, and they both tell of events that took place after the end of The Last Pack.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **You know how when you've got something that's bugging you, sometimes it's easier to just get it written down so it stops bugging you? That's pretty much why this got started.  
Riku and Sora ganged up on me and persuaded me to let them sit around telling stories so I can write them up for you to read. Aren't they nice to me...  
Anyway, you know the way it goes. My wish hasn't been granted, and isn't likely to be granted, so I don't own Kingdom Hearts, it's characters, and so on. Oh well.

_

* * *

Hey guys. Sora here. Some of you were a little surprised when I brought my tale of becoming a Werewolf up to date-_  
Up to date? You call that up to date?_  
Shut up Riku. I'm getting there. Anyway, I brought it up to date, and left it at that. Well, a few things happened since then, and Riku's a part of them. He found the original copy – you know, the one I actually wrote down and you guys got to read – which let me talk to him about it, and now he's taken it into his blood-deprived mind to copy me. So I'm around to fill in what he misses, and generally have a laugh at his expense._  
Are you done humiliating me now, Sora?_  
Go ahead, Riku. I'm sure they're waiting breathlessly to hear what stupid things you got into._  
How kind of you.  
What Sora's neglected to tell you is that once again, we've found ourselves on the opposite side to each other. Except this time, it's because he's a huge ball of fur-_  
Hey! Cut that out!_  
A huge ball of fur, like I was saying, and I'm a vampire. We're also probably the only ones of either of our kinds to stay friends even after it happened, even though we're meant to naturally be trying to kill each other. But c'mon, he's my friend – you can't ask me to go round killing off my friends._  
Probably just as well, 'cause I'd beat you any day._  
We're not going to find out though. Because it'd be a bit fatal for one of us, and coming down with a case of the dead isn't exactly my idea of a good time.  
Anyway, my account picks up somewhere in the middle of his tale.  
See, while he was busy playing the good pet dog up at Vampire central, I was trying to track him down to go Heartless hunting with him._  
Good fun. They're not even hard to find. Then it's just a contest to see which of us can get the most._  
Yeah, except that one time the Neo-shadow sneaked up behind you._  
Not my fault. You could have said something._  
I was busy at the time._  
Get back to the story Riku._  
You distracted me.  
I picked up his trail in Wolford – that's the name of the Werewolf village. It's remains, anyway.  
It was deserted except for a lot of charred wooden ruins. Since the entire place was made from wood, it's practically a fire waiting to happen._  
Blame that on your friends._  
They weren't my friends at the time, and most of them still aren't.  
The hotel, easily the largest building of the lot, was about the only thing that wouldn't have fallen down if you sneezed at it. There was some evidence of people staying there very recently, as what wasn't toasted had been brought down into a sheltered part of the lobby's remains to make a kind of makeshift bedroom for three._  
Three guesses who they were. Remember where I left the others when I went off looking for trouble?_  
At the time, I had no idea it was them. At least not until I poked about a bit. There must have been a scuffle of some kind, because Kairi would never leave behind her necklace, the one with the silver bead on it, and that's what I found._  
I wondered why she didn't have it up at the vampire castle. What happened to it?_  
I'm not sure actually. It disappeared on me overnight some time after then._  
Maybe it was returned to her when their memories were changed._  
Probably, but you're getting us sidetracked again.  
Besides this necklace of hers, I had no leads, and no direction. I knew they'd all come here to investigate something odd about it, and clearly there'd been mass fighting with the use of fire, but that was about all I know. Not really helpful.  
As it turned out, I didn't need to go looking for her. I stayed the night, though I can't say about sleep. That place is creepy. The entire place creaks, and the wind through the ruins whistles. It sounds almost like dead people's voices._  
Maybe it's the ghosts of the werewolves._  
I don't believe in that sort of thing, Sora._  
You don't have to believe. Stuff like that happens._  
Oh yeah? How?  
_Just look at the Ritual. Four other werewolves show up – but I'm the only real, living one there._  
That's different. Your Kathann brings them back for it_  
Doesn't mean they can't come back on their own._  
Whatever.  
Probably because I couldn't sleep, I noticed more. For one thing, I wasn't alone. Not ghosts, but people._  
Hah. People? Them?_  
Stop that.  
They wore dark stuff to blend in, but if you've ever been up at night you know your eyes start to adjust to the darkness and you can make stuff out. If you're wearing the wrong kind of dark clothes, you'll stick out like a sore thumb to someone who can see in the dark pretty good. Someone like me.  
They looked like they were looking for something. I wasn't interested in picking a fight with them, not late at night anyway, so I kept to the shadows of the shelter and watched.  
Some of them did search the remains of the hotel. I heard them talking while they did. I can't be certain I remember it right, but if I do the conversation went something like this.  
"Didn't we already search this place?"  
"You know what the Master's like. Do it right, or do it again."  
"Yeah, then if you still don't, you don't get to keep on living," a third voice called.  
"Keep it down!" the first snapped. "If there _is_ someone here, you're going to wake them up."_  
As if he wasn't already. I don't think the idea of being subtle has ever occurred to vampires. Present company excepted, that is._  
"There isn't going to be anyone else here," the second complained. "It's a burnt wreck."  
"Humans have these things called 'legs' Vidan," the first explained slowly, as if to an idiot. "They use them to move around from place to place. And this is a place, you know."  
In the darkness, I could see the one called Vidan. He scowled at someone I couldn't see, muttering something under his breath, then louder, "Who in their right mind would want to come _here_ of all places?"  
"Us?" the third voice called. "Gotta trail here boss."  
Of course, as werewolves haven't invented stone streets yet, the dusty paths were littered with my footsteps._  
We know about stone, Riku. It's just there isn't any around the town to use. Kinda hard to build with stone you don't have._  
Don't you ever trade with others?_  
Werewolves don't like outsiders. They have to act human, which isn't easy for a lot of them. They also can't talk so openly about things because we're not allowed to discuss it, so it's always been avoided._  
Where did you learn so much about the history of the werewolves, by the way? You didn't exactly spend long with them._  
Kathann stops by from time to time. He likes to reminisce about the older times so he doesn't forget._  
He's a God, Sora._  
So?_  
How can he forget if he's a God?_  
Hades is a God too, Riku. You'd think being a God he'd be all-powerful and all that, but he still lost out to me. Several times, at that._  
Eh, guess you got a point there._  
Story?_  
Yeah, I know.  
One of them was apparently smarter than the rest and notices the trails of dust on the remains of the carpet in the lobby that I'd left during my search, and naturally they found me.  
That is to say, one of them dropped down from above unexpectedly, grabbed my by the shoulders and hauled me up into the air.  
Bet you didn't know we could fly, Sora._  
I heard it talked about a few times. I never actually saw it happen myself. I've often wondered why they didn't fly while they thought, until I realised that most aren't intelligent enough to hold two thoughts at once. If they'd tried to fly and fight, they'd probably get it wrong._  
You're taking all the fun out of this. How am I meant to surprise you with what we can do if you already know?_  
Chalk it up to being stuck as their pet for all that time. Spend long enough around people and you're bound to pick up on things. Isn't that how you found out about what happened to me?_  
Yeah, but that's later on in the story.  
Where was I?_  
The undead bloodsucker had just picked you up and had you hanging around in mid-air._  
Right.  
I struggled to get free of course, but I've since discovered that vampires are a little stronger than they look like they should be. He wasn't about to let go of me that easily.  
"Look what I found," he called down to the others. There were only five of them, him included.  
"See? I told you there'd be one here," the first said to Vidan, who muttered something. "What was that?"  
"I said you were right, alright!" he snapped, scowling again. "Don't rub it in. It's bad enough as it is."  
"Aren't we a little nasty today?"  
"I'm not having a good week."  
"It shows. Poor you. First you let that dog scare you into letting him loose, then the Master punishes you by taking away your mealtime today, and now you turn out to be completely wrong about here..."  
"Shut up," Vidan cut him off. "You don't exactly have a glowing record either."  
"At least I'm not afraid of the big bad wolf," he grinned back, causing the others to laugh nastily.  
If you've read Sora's account of what happened, you know what they were talking about.  
The one holding me had perched on the remains of a wall nearby during the banter, leaving me still hanging in front of it.  
I gave it a good kick on one side, making it shake a fair bit. It made him lose balance slightly, but he didn't fall. The sound attracted the attention of the others again.  
"So what should we do with it, boys?" the first asked.  
"I'm feeling a little hungry," one of the others grinned, momentarily flashing a pair of sharper teeth._  
They're called fangs._  
I know what they are Sora, I didn't know at the time, remember?  
"What do you reckon?" the first called up to the one holding me. "Think we should give it to Jake as a snack?"  
"He smells like a good meal," I heard him say behind me. He drew me up slightly to sniff at my neck deeply, then went on, "But you know what we gotta do. Master's Orders."  
"And there I was looking to a gourmet meal," Jake shook his head. "So who gets to do the honours?"  
They looked to each other, and an argument quickly broke out between them over it.  
I judged the distance to the floor, then glanced up to look at the one still holding me.  
"You really should get out more," I told him. "You look like someone dipped you in white paint."  
"You really shouldn't make such noise," he sneered at me. "You look like I could take care of this for them."  
"So why haven't you?"  
"I don't feel like getting in trouble with the Master for it... yet."  
"Too bad for you, huh?"  
"Don't push your luck. I might decide it's worth the risk."  
Strong as he might have been, he wasn't expecting me to do anything to him. Much less grab his arms and yank forward. He completely lost balance, letting go of me in an attempt to try and stabilise himself. I dropped to the floor, only just managing to avoid harm, ignored the thud of him falling down beside me, and quickly headed round another wall. I could have fought them, but putting as much distance as I could between me and them seemed like a better plan.  
I had hoped that their argument would keep them distracted for long enough to find somewhere I could get some rest for the night, but as I left I knew they'd stopped arguing the moment their friend had hit the floor.  
There passed just a few moments where they contemplated what they saw, then I heard, "Don't let him get away!"_  
Why does everyone yell that when people run? You'd think they'd lead the chase instead of standing there telling everyone else to do it._  
That's probably because they don't expect it to happen. I didn't expect to get caught again either, but it happened. I was near the edge of down when they finally caught up with me. Two of them came up behind, a rope between them, swooped low and tripped me up.  
They'd have had me then, but I decided if they were going to play dirty, I was going to make them work to get their hands on me again. I drew out my own keyblade, sending one of the two – Jake, I think actually – flying back down the path and into one of the others.. The other tried to grab at me again, but stopped after he got my keyblade in his face._  
Nice person, aren't you?_  
I didn't have any reason to be nice to him.  
He vanished after that, and I've no idea what happened to him._  
I was told about it once. Only me or something called Aconitum – or Wolfsbane if you prefer – can actually kill a vampire. Anything else if it would kill a normal human, makes them disappear and re-form somewhere else._  
I guess that explains that. You're more useful than you look, for a hairball._  
Don't mock it – the fur's good in all weather._  
Except the rain._  
...alright, yeah, except the rain._  
Anyway, while Jake and the one he'd landed on were for some reason fighting each other, the last two came after me. I'd have struck out at them too, except one, the first one who seemed like he was leading them, he held out his hand as he approached, then swung it toward a wall nearby. I was picked up and thrown into it as he did so. Not just thrown onto it, but it seemed like for as long as he held his hand out at me, I was held against it as if a giant hand was crushing me against it.  
"Should I do it?" Vidan asked him.  
"Quickly. Before they finish fighting. Don't give them time to get jealous."  
Vidan flashed him a quick grin, then turned to me, his fangs now in full display.  
I was slid down the wall so I was just off the ground, and so Vidan could reach.  
In my defence, I did try to hit him as well, but their leader noticed me trying and with his other hand delivered a crushing blow to my keyblade wielding hand, forcing me to drop it.  
Vidan's eyes seemed to glint an evil red in the darkness as he drew close, then I felt it; the fangs puncture my neck.  
I felt like I was being drained and weakened at the same time. Everything seemed to grow darker after a few moments, and I remember as Vidan let go, I was dropped to the floor. I couldn't get up enough strength to get up again.  
Before I lost consciousness I heard Vidan lick his lips then say, "It's done. He's ours now."


	2. Chapter 2

The vampires must have taken me along with them when they left, because I came to in a bleak, black room, empty except for me, a bed and a window. The only decorations were a plain mirror, and a picture of some old guy with a grin that looked like he was about to bite into you. It wasn't exactly a large room either – I could touch the walls if I stretched a little._  
Well there's creature comforts for you. At least we're a little nicer on newcomers._  
Well, you give people a chance to reject your gift. I don't think any of us have ever done it.  
From the window, I could see a town stretching out further below. Judging by the light, I'd guessed I'd slept right through to the next evening.  
I'd say I felt no different to normal, but I was hungry, and not for food. For now, it was little more than a nagging feeling that I needed to get something. Since I had only a few ideas of what had happened, I had no idea what this new craving was.  
Apparently new vampires aren't trusted much either. When I tried to leave, I found the door had been locked from the other side.  
Without anything to do, I glanced in the mirror. I had a suspicion I knew what I was, and if the rumours were true I wouldn't see myself._  
Yeah, but the rumours aren't true. I found that pretty much every preconception humans have about either of our kinds are completely wrong._  
Maybe not all of them, but you're not that far wrong. I did appear in the mirror, which was a surprise.  
I could clearly see two small red pricks on my neck where I remember the fangs punctured. Now I came to notice them, they started to feel somewhat sore.  
I didn't keep my attention on them for long, because I noticed a different change. My eyes were no longer the blue-green they used to be. Instead they were a deep blood red. They didn't have the shine that blood takes on when you cut yourself, it was a duller red than that, but not quite into what you'd call dark red._  
You suck at describing colours, Riku._  
I suck at other things too, but only when I can't ignore it any longer._  
I've often wondered what it'd be like to see you do it._  
You're right here at hand, Sora. Want me to give you a first-person view on it? We can find out what happens if a vampire bites a werewolf._  
Ah – no thanks Riku. I think I can live without satisfying that curiosity._  
Somehow I thought you'd say that.  
There was one other thing I had yet to do. Feeling a little apprehensive about it, I bared my teeth at my reflection. There wasn't any difference at all, not until I actually opened my mouth properly. _Then_ the fangs appeared._  
Probably so you don't bite your own lips or something._  
You're just full of useful insights today, Captain Obvious._  
I have a paw right at hand, Riku. Be nice or I might decide to use it._  
A paw at hand? That doesn't even make sense._  
So what? Get on with the story._  
There isn't much to tell for a bit. I'd pretty much confirmed what I was now, though I didn't really want to believe it. Sora looked a bit like a vampire while he was in Halloween town, so I figured this could just be something like that._  
I'd almost forgotten about that. I wonder what would have happened if I'd tried to bite anyone._  
Probably nothing. You looked like one of us, but you definitely weren't._  
How can you tell?_  
You didn't have the Craving. I'll get to that in a bit.  
I have no idea how long passed until someone finally paid a call on me. He looked identical to the old guy in the painting. He wore a dark suit, had white hair that flowed down his back, and the darkest eyes I've ever seen on anyone. Still red, but only if you looked hard enough.  
"Good evening," he murmured to me in a voice that sounded almost oily. He closed the door, leaning on it and continued, "I expect you're wondering what you're doing here."  
"I was brought here after I got bitten," I shrugged. "Who're you?"  
"You may call me Master. Because, you see, I am your Master."  
"I don't think so."  
"Oh, you don't need to think so. You know what you are... Riku, isn't it?" I nodded, not saying a word. "And therein lies your reason. All vampires answer to me."  
"Why should I do anything you tell me to?"  
"I could command you, but I dislike forcing people to do things. I prefer to have them think of it as a choice they take on their own."  
"What makes you any different?"  
"I am the first," he smiled at me. "I am the progenitor, the father of all vampire-kind. If not for me, then none of you would be what you are."  
"What if I don't want to be one?"  
"It's a little late to be asking that. You're a vampire for life. And do you know how long a vampire lives?"  
"About as long as it takes for him to get killed?"  
"You have a sharp wit, Riku. Vampires in fact can stare death in the face and live eternally if they take care to avoid the only two things which can truly destroy us. One of which currently languishes as my pet, and the other is being burned wherever it may be found, with the exception of one small human herbalist, who grows it specifically for me. In exchange, I grant him his continued life as a human."  
"Why not have a vampire do it?"  
"Because it has become a family trade. His family is granted safety from us, and always will for as long as they grow it for me. It has worked for over six centuries."  
There was a long silence in the room. I had the distinct feeling that the Master would stay until he was satisfied I knew all I was meant to, and he was going to make me ask for it._  
What's wrong with that?_  
He didn't give any indication of what to ask, Sora. He just stood and waited with that creepy smile of his.  
How I grew to hate that smile of his! It's disruptive, you can't keep a line of thought while he's doing it. It's impossible to think properly around him because of it._  
I seem to recall someone saying the same thing about a certain wolvish grin..._  
Yours is just a little unsettling. Not creepy.  
I finally managed to keep a train of thought long enough to ask him, "What am I meant to do now?"  
"Whatever you want," he answered. "Though judging by your eyes, you should probably feed before long."  
"Feed?"  
"Don't you feel it? That little hunger for something no food can provide? A nagging little voice that tells you to find the single thing that all vampires want and need? To take it from an undeserving human for yourself, to take the very life-blood as your own-"  
"Stop!" I cut him off. If you've been hungry, you know how talking about food makes you more hungry. The same is true for vampires, except there's only one thing we actually need for a meal._  
Seriously? You don't need to eat or anything?_  
Nope, not a thing. Don't need to eat or drink anything like you or anyone else does. I still can if I want, but it doesn't actually do anything for me.  
The Master's grin broadened slightly, and he asked, "Is there something wrong?"  
"You're making me more hungry."  
"Good. Look at your eyes."  
I didn't expect to see anything different, but I was in for a surprise. They were now a much darker shade of red. Nowhere near as dark as the Master's were, but they were definitely darker.  
I knew why it'd happened, but I really didn't want to believe it. I turned back to see him still there with that cursed grin of his.  
"What did you do?" I demanded of him.  
"I made you hungry. You said it yourself. We call it the Craving. That feeling, and the change in the colour of your eyes are all the indication you need that you need to feed. You can't put it off for too long, because if you don't feed, you'll die."  
"So how do I... feed?"  
"How do you think?"  
"By..." I started, then thought back to the night before. I'd been turned by being bitten. Surely feeding couldn't be the same? I had to find out, so I just came right out and said it. "By biting someone, right?"  
"On the neck. Just like you were."  
"But I was turned."  
"Oh yes. But you could just as easily have been food instead."  
"What's the difference?"  
"What you want."  
"I don't get it. I have to want it?"  
"Of course. If you want to turn someone, you have to want that to happen. If you're just using them as your next meal, you simply have to want their blood."  
"What if I don't want it?"  
"Then you gain no benefit, and the Craving will go unfulfilled. Go for too long like that..."  
"And I'll die. I get it."  
He was wrong about wanting the blood. That turned out to be a trick he played on vampires after he found that it would jade people easier._  
Jade?_  
Corrupt them, whatever you want to call it. It would wear down on their morals until they started to enjoy it, then they'd turn out like any other vampire._  
You're not like that._  
I found out it was a trick later on. Right now, the Master was the only source of information I had, so I took him at his word – especially since it was probably the only life-or-death situation I'd ever face now._  
Well, y'know, except for me._  
When was the last time you tried to kill me, Sora?_  
I never really tried... I might have wanted to when you found my tale, but I'd never do it._  
Yeah, well, we'll get to that in good time. People will have to wait to hear what happened then, because we're not there yet._  
So what happened next?_  
Well, the Master and I talked a little more, and I learned a bit more about vampires. Like you said, almost everything people think they know about us is wrong. The only real thing they got right is that we're completely incapable of setting foot on any religious ground. Graveyard, church, chapel, temple, you name it, if it's had priests invoke their sacred rights or whatever on that land, then no Vampire can go there. Your pack grounds and the place you to the ritual are protected because you honour Kathann all the time._  
So that's why they had to use fire, huh? But what about Kieran?_  
I'm guessing by the way you described it, either he was just outside that reach, or they threw him in and pushed the tree down onto him._  
Ouch. Can we talk about something else now?_  
You brought it up.  
Before he left, the Master told me the same creation tale that Sora told everyone in his version of events. There were differences though, such as a lot of whining over being cursed, outcast by the gods and stuff like that. It also went into a little more detail on what the werewolves call the First and Second Great Wars, and since the Master was the one writing our history books, they were highly biased against werewolves. I had a very low opinion of them when he finished telling me._  
You don't any more though, do you?_  
No, but that's because I got to read things from your perspective.  
Anyway, before he finally left – and let me out of my room – he paired me up with Jake, the vampire from the night before that had called me a 'gourmet meal'. Jake needed to feed as well, so the Master told him to make sure I fed, or he'd have to miss out on one. That was a punishment he dished out often.  
"No hard feelings," Jake told me as we left the castle. "We're brother vampires now."  
"Easy for you to say," I muttered. "I don't want this."  
"I didn't either. But you learn to live with it. Before long you won't want to go back, even if you could."


	3. Chapter 3

Despite his previous comments about me, Jake was far more friendly with me now I was one of them. He got me through the tough period at the start where I had to adjust with a good natured humour that seemed somehow out of place in comparison to how he'd seemed before.  
"It's because you're a real person now," he told me when I pointed out this change. "Not one of those humans. They're so fragile... I don't know how any of them make it through their lives."  
"You were one too once," I said.  
"Oh, just passing the time until I became one of us," he said dismissively. "I barely had to wait at all."  
"How young were you?"  
"I was just a child. Not even past my teenage years."  
"That's still childhood?"  
He looked at me oddly, then laughed. "I keep forgetting. It's been over six hundred years since then. I have a slightly different perspective. You'll pick it up after a century or two."  
"I can't imagine shrugging off a few centuries so easily."  
"Oh, you get used to it. You wait, you'll reach your first hundred and wonder where it went."  
He led us out of the fortress and down into the town. Almost immediately, I noticed there was a reaction to our presence.  
Sora never noticed it during the time he was there, but everyone in the town instinctively looks at your eyes before they say or do anything. If there's even the slightest hint of red, the humans there will be instantly afraid of you. Talk to them and they'll be meek, polite, and try to see to whatever you want as soon as possible, not because they want to get rid of you, but because most vampires will simply kill or feed on any human that doesn't serve them quick enough.  
"You get used to it," Jake repeated, noticing my unease at this treatment. "But first, we've got to find you a snack."  
At the word 'snack', the humans around scattered.  
"That's assuming you don't scare them off," I told him.  
"I've never been any good at stealth," he admitted. "I like to run them down, corner them and then enjoy every last bit of the fight they give up."  
I shuddered back from the idea. It was bad enough they were afraid of me, but to play on that fear?  
Don't you do something like that when you're hunting, Sora?_  
Hunting? Whatever gave you that idea?_  
You run down your prey, and they're usually afraid of you, right?_  
It's a herd instinct, Riku. Wolves are their predators, and it's only natural to run from your predators. I guess there is a bit of fear in there, but it happens so quickly in comparison to what Jake was talking about._  
You have a very vague memory of hunting, don't you?_  
No. Just a vague memory of everything I'm not hunting. It's what a wolf _lives_ for, Riku. Once I've got my prey in my sights, nothing else matters, just me and the prey. The rush is something I never tire of._  
Maybe I should join you sometime._  
Forget it. You'd attract too much attention._  
I could stay out of sight and watch._  
Maybe. Keep telling the story, Riku. I want to hear it too._  
Looks like I've got an avid audience already, and we've barely even started.  
Anyway, Jake and I wandered through town for a fair while. It has a maze of alleyways and streets that's so easy to get lost in it's unbelievable._  
I never got lost there._  
You've got a sense of smell to back you up. You can smell the difference, I can't.  
The Craving grew steadily stronger, and I often found my eyes flicking to the necks of those we passed.  
Eventually, I had to ask, "How do I know who to choose?"  
"Does it matter?" Jake shrugged indifferently. "They're only humans."  
"Yeah, but I was one of them until recently. I kinda still relate to them."  
"Look, you know you gotta do it, Riku. I know you don't want to, but you don't have a choice. Just pick someone and get it over with."  
"But... I don't know how to go about it... I mean... right out in public, or take them off somewhere..."  
"Do whatever feels right to you."  
"That means not doing it."  
"You can't take that choice."  
"I know."  
After wandering some more, I couldn't ignore the Craving any longer, I had to do it. I knew what was involved, now was the time to prove I could do it.  
I kept as much control as I still had with it insistently nagging away and left Jake to watch me. We were in a thankfully quiet part of town, so I took the arm of the first person who passed by. I don't remember many details about him, he was sort of average. Shorter than me, I think.  
"Where are you off to in a hurry?" I asked him.  
Naturally, he looked to my eyes first and gave a kind of pathetic little whimper that left me feeling guilty about this already.  
"I'm just off to work, your lordship," he squeaked. "Is there a problem?"  
"Come with me," I told him, not letting go of his arm. He resisted, but being a vampire amplified my strength far beyond normal, and my grip held firm. He wasn't getting away from me.  
I took him down a small back alley, right to the shadows at the end. I was vaguely aware of Jake standing watch at the mouth of the alley, and keeping an eye on me.  
I didn't want to do this, but there was no ignoring it so I just got right to it. I turned him round to face me and held him against the wall by one shoulder.  
"No!" he cried out. "Please! I have a family to feed!"  
I shut out the cries, leaning in and taking the bite.  
I was completely unprepared for the way that felt. My fangs punctured into the neck with only the barest resistance, and the blood flowed. There's something about what we are that makes use of the fangs as a kind of channel, it brings it straight to the tongue and from there it's like drinking anything else. Hold the victim's neck at just the right angle, and it's like drinking from a tap.  
The blood itself tastes kind of rusty, but I was a vampire. Blood was my life, I had to have it to live. It was and still is the sweetest thing I've ever tasted. The Master didn't have to tell us to want it, the slightest taste was enough to make me want it.  
It seemed like almost too soon that the whimpering died out, and with it the last of the blood. It was a bitter-sweet moment, I had my fill, but the taste... that was what changed new vampires so easily. It was addictive, and I wanted more.  
Then I realised that I was now holding a dead man's shoulder, and with that came the stark reality of what I'd just done.  
I let him go, and he just slid down the wall. He was pale, almost pasty faced, and definitely not among the living.  
'I have a family to feed', he'd said. Those words struck me hard. A family. I didn't know him or his family, but I'd just parted the two, just like that. One bite, and a family man was no more._  
You did what you had to, Riku. I had to do the same, remember._  
It's not the same, Sora. You had a good reason to kill the Master. I did that just because I couldn't control the Craving. If it were now, I could have kept control a lot longer before I got so desperate that I'd just take someone and ignore something like that.  
Then Jake was there. He laid a hand on my shoulder, but was nodding approvingly. I noticed his own eyes were darker now too, and realised that watching me feed must have made him want to more.  
Before we left the alley, he handed me a small bottle and a mirror. He didn't have to tell me what they were for. Since then, I've discovered that it's a very bad idea to leave teeth, especially the fangs, with blood on them after feeding. It's hard to get out again if you leave it too long.  
While I cleaned them, I noted my eyes – they were now a bright red, even brighter than blood from a fresh cut. Once my teeth were cleaned off again, we headed back out into the town so he could find his own snack.  
Along the way, he stopped one of the town guard and gave them directions to my victim. They didn't ask for a cause of death – the only reason a vampire reported a death was if they'd done it, and the guard knew better than to try to stop vampires.  
He took the more subtle approach this time, a far kinder way... at least at first. He found a young girl and got friendly with her, throwing an arm around her, asking her name and what she liked while steering her away from wherever she was going. He never once turned his face to hers during that talk.  
Eventually, he stopped in the middle of a street that was silent but for us and finally turned to her. Recognition dawned on her, and she tried to pull away but he had a grip on her wrists, he wasn't losing her.  
I felt the Craving build up again. It had faded almost entirely since I'd fed, but knowing what he was going to do brought back the memory of what it had been like, and brought the Craving back. It would make my next time due a few hours sooner, but even that was a long ways off.  
"Come now dear," he told her gently. "It won't hurt a bit. Just a little prick on the neck, you'll never know I was there."  
"Get away from me, you freak!"  
"Fighting me only makes it taste sweeter," he said, licking the lips. She was still pulling away, oblivious to the wall behind her. When she could back up no further she tried to push him away, but there's no fighting the kind of strength a vampire has when he needs to feed.  
I turned away. I didn't want to have to feed a second time in one day._  
Has that ever happened to you?_  
No. If nothing influences the Craving, it's possible to go for an entire week between feedings. Of course, just being around humans is enough to influence it. You have no idea how many times I've had to restrain myself around Kairi ever since. Whenever I start to feel it coming on, I always get clear from her. I don't ever want to put her in that situation._  
I guess you'd rather not mention that I'd never forgive you for it._  
I'd never expect you to if I did.  
We left her body slumped where he'd done it. His eyes were as bright as mine now, but they were bright with something else too. He'd enjoyed it.  
"Monster!" someone called down from an upstairs window.  
"Watch your mouth," Jake snapped at the fat woman leaning out. "Or you'll be next."  
"You just try it and see," she threatened.  
"I will," he grinned back. "I'll let everyone know where to come to get a _big_ snack."  
She seemed to shrink back slightly, and quickly slammed the shutters closed. One of them fell off.  
"That's if any of them can stomach you," he muttered, beckoning for me to catch up. I tried not to look at the poor girl's body as I passed.  
We walked in silence back for a long ways before either of us said anything.  
In a quiet voice I asked, "Does it get any easier?"  
"You care too much," he laughed.  
"He had a family, Jake."  
"So? They're human too."  
"What are they going to do without him?"  
"Who cares? Listen Riku. You're a vampire. One of us. Not one of them. They're nothing, nothing at all. All they're here for is us. They work here for us, for our benefit. They live here for us, for our benefit. And they die here for us, for our benefit. That's all there is to it. It doesn't matter what happens to them. There's always more of them. Look out the towers of our fortress, and you'll see fields of farmlands out there. Food is so abundant here that anywhere else the prices would be daylight robbery. There's never been a famine, never a shortfall. It keeps them able to eat, and that's the only important thing. If they eat, they live, and that means we eat." He looked at me for a few moments, then shook his head and said, "The first time is always the hardest. You'll handle it better after a few more times."  
A few more times. I couldn't count how many times I've had to feed since then, and it still bothers me. The worst part of it is their last words, crying out, begging to be left.  
I still wake up sometimes from a sound night's sleep with the awful memory of the words from my first time.  
'I have a family to feed'.  
Think about it for a bit. It would haunt anyone.

_Riku's a little upset after having to go through that, and honestly, I doubt anyone could blame him. He's gone off to feed because talking about it made his eyes go real dark, so I thought I'd give you an idea of where this is in my story.  
Kairi, Donald and Goofy were taken to the fortress just a couple of months after I got myself captured there, and Riku went looking for me about a month after that. By this time in Riku's story, they were also at the fortress, but kept in an area I was forbidden to enter, so I had no idea they were there.  
I was their pet for six months if you remember my tale, so we're about half way through my time there.  
Anyway, I can't tell Riku's story for him – I haven't heard any more than you have. So story returns when he gets over having to feed on someone again. I kinda feel sorry for him having to go through that, but there's nothing I can do to help him really._


	4. Chapter 4

Life at what I came to call Vampire central wasn't actually as different as you'd expect. There were kitchens to prepare food, even though we never had any need for it. Some vampires, myself included, consider eating a habit they never got out of. Besides, it sort of attracts attention after a while. People notice you don't eat anything.  
Unless the Master actually sent for any specific one of us, our time was our own to do with as we pleased – provided we didn't leave town.  
There was also one part of the fortress we were expressly forbidden to go into, the northern tower. No one seemed to know why, but the rumours suggested that a trio of 'normals' had been taken up there. The term is only used when talking about unturned nonhumans – those that aren't werewolves, anyway. More interestingly, food was taken up to them regularly throughout the day at the same times normal people would have had their main meals. The Master was also known to visit them regularly.  
Jake calmly advised me that trying to find out would probably result in being punished, and that for new vampires, the punishments are harder to handle. It was definitely not in my best interests to try and go there without permission.  
So instead, I spent most of my time wandering around the rest of the fortress, trying to persuade the female vampires to leave me alone. I'm sure they were nice, and their compliments probably were accurate, but if I'd wanted affection I'd get a puppy._  
I could see to that for you._  
I said a puppy, not an overgrown wolf. Besides, it wouldn't work. Dogs – real dogs, that is, not you – can tell what I am. Cats too. They're terrified of us.  
There's also the slight problem that being a vampire, I only have blood in me after I've fed, and only for a certain time after then. If I did want to do anything with them, it'd have to be soon after feeding.  
No, I'm not kidding you. You all know what I'm talking about. Don't make me have to come right out and say it. If you think about it, and maybe read up a little, you'll figure out why.  
And you can stop that too._  
I didn't say a word._  
You don't have to. That look says it all.  
I had a few days short of a week before I needed to feed again, and that left me with plenty of time – and not much to do with it. I started to get used to seeing red eyes in the mirror, and even got a little more comfortable talking about the whole thing. I learned that it was possible to put it off for a time by finding something juicy and biting into that instead. Apples were a common one. It doesn't stave off the Craving for long, but it can give about an hour and sometimes that's all I need._  
So you're the one who keeps nicking the apples._  
Yeah. Sorry. Did you want them?_  
No, I was just wondering really._  
On my fourth day there – night actually – the Master summoned me and told me to meet him in the north tower.  
"I didn't disturb your sleep did I?" he asked me when I joined him.  
"No," yawned back. "I was just getting up anyway."  
"In the evening? Very stereotypical of you."  
"What? Oh. No, it's nothing like that. When I woke up here it was late evening, so now my body seems convinced that's the new morning, and new time to get up."  
"Try staying up for a few days at a time," he suggested. "When you finally do go to sleep, it'll think that's the new time to sleep. Good for resetting your sleeping hours."  
"I'll try it sometime. What did you call me for?"  
"My guests upstairs mentioned you earlier, along with others. I want you to tell me if you know them, to confirm their story."  
"That's all?"  
"We'll see. Come with me."  
The tower, like everything else, was massive. The spiral staircase wrapped around the central rooms, and was easily large enough to accommodate four people walking side by side.  
The rooms inside were considerably large as well. He paused at one on the way up where there were sounds of a whip being cracked.  
"Why are you here?" he asked. I couldn't see who was inside, or hear what was said. After a few moments to listen he said, "Well take it to the south tower and do it there instead. I told you not to use this tower."  
He closed the door again and we continued.  
"What were they doing?"  
"Some of us have stranger pleasures than others. There are rooms throughout the fortress equipped to cater to such things."  
"What kind of things?"  
"Wait a few years until human interests begin to bore you. You'll find them on your own then."  
Finally we reached the top, and he nudged the door open.  
"They're asleep," he told me. "Don't disturb them. Just tell me who they are."  
I nodded, entering. It was dark inside, and there were sounds of snuffling and some suspiciously familiar snoring that could only come from one person I know.  
Goofy was sleeping on a couch by a fireplace, leaning back on his arms and Donald snored, curled up in a chair. Kairi was the only one of them to have taken a bed. I felt a sudden, momentary want when I saw her, and turned away quickly before it became anything further._  
You don't mean-_  
The Craving. Even though I'd fed only a few days before, it was still there.  
I was able to push it aside for now, and returned outside.  
"I know them," I told him.  
"And?"  
"The girl's Kairi. I've known her longer than either of the others. Donald's the duck, and is the Royal Magician of King Mickey."  
"And the last?"  
"Goofy, Captain of the King's royal knights."  
"And this King Mickey... where would he be found?"  
"Disney Castle. Unless he's gone off again. Sometimes he gets involved in things personally."  
"Interesting. I believe I'll pay a call on him. You can go now. Don't try and return here though."  
"I won't be allowed, right?"  
He just nodded. I knew he wouldn't say any more. It practically sent me on my way just like that.  
I toyed with the idea of glancing into the room we'd paused at, but thought better. It wasn't really any of my business what other vampires got up to. I was determined to live as much like a human as I did before. I had no intention of giving up anything I didn't have to.  
I don't know if the Master ever did go to see Mickey. I don't even know what they would have talked about if he did.  
He called me again on the day I was due to feed. I found him on a balcony above a large banquet hall. There was a second balcony above the one we were on.  
"You wanted me?" I asked when I joined him.  
"You have to feed today, don't you?"  
"Yeah."  
"Then you can join in today's feast here."  
"Feast? I thought we didn't need to eat."  
"You're missing my meaning. Those tables down there will be surrounded by humans. These balconies up here will hold vampires, you among them."  
I realised what he meant by feast now. It would be a feeding frenzy. There would be no way I'd be able to control myself in all of that if I had to see it, or even just hear it.  
The real problem I had with it was that I wanted it. The Craving was fairly strong as it was, and the idea of what was going to happen brought it on stronger. That coupled with the memory of the taste of the blood, never mind what I'd heard, the taste was what mattered-  
Ow! What did you do that for?_  
You were going on about the taste again._  
Oh. Right. Thanks. Not so hard next time?_  
Depends on if it snaps you out of it._  
Let that be a lesson to everyone. Don't let me go on about the taste.  
Anyway, I had a clear problem on my mind. I didn't like having to do it, but just thinking about it with the Craving this strong overruled that and I actually did want it. So I surprised even myself when I told him, "I'll be here. When does it happen?"  
"An hour from now. But Riku?"  
"Yeah?"  
"Wear something different, and cover your face. I don't want anyone to recognise you at the feast."  
"Will there be someone there I know?"  
"In a manner of speaking. I don't want you to chance it, understand?"  
"I'll see to it."  
I didn't exactly have anything to hand that would fill this requirement he'd set on me. My only real friend among the vampires was of course Jake, and I knew he'd been assigned to handle something along with a lot of the other vampires. The fortress was quieter and emptier without them.  
This left me to find a solution on my own, and that meant finding a store in the town below with something that would turn the trick.  
Figuring that the Master wanted me to be as unrecognisable as possible, I decided along the way down it was probably better to get a complete change. Besides, it'd give me something else to wear. No doubt there'd be blood everywhere after the feast.  
The store I patronized – very literally – was probably the only one in the town that was also a tailor. Tailoring things to fit takes time though, so I didn't bother with that service this time.  
Naturally, it was run by humans. I still had a strong Craving, so I didn't waste any time. It made me somewhat blunt and probably even a little rude when I talked with the staff about what I required. They were probably used to it anyway.  
What I came out with was about as far from my normal appearance as possible. Black trainers, grey pants, a white shirt and a black hoodie. They insisted on the black, probably because other vampires insist on black for everything._  
Now there's an interesting idea for you. Do vampires make everything black out of habit, or because the humans around think it's expected?_  
Personally, I wouldn't mind seeing a bit more colour around the place. I hear Samantha's been trying to redecorate._  
You talk with her?_  
I wouldn't say talk. I drop by from time to time, then when the townsfolk find out what I am I get run out of town again. They're extremely anti-vampire now.  
I didn't really feel comfortable with the new look, but it suited what the Master wanted of me, and the hood on the hoodie was deep enough that no one would recognise me if I left it up.  
The 'guests' were already arriving in the hall when I got back. I quickly found a place on the lower balcony, reasoning that if I had to do it, I might as well get it over with quickly. Closer to the food, less time to wait.  
The Master wasn't there. There was space left for him to stand on the lower balcony, but he hadn't made an appearance yet. The humans below milled around aimlessly, talking to each other. Oddly, they didn't seem to be aware of us in the slightest.  
A vampire walked into the banquet hall below and rang a bell.  
"Please, take your seats," he told them with a broad grin. "His Lordship will be with you momentarily."  
And then he was, with that damned smile of his again, and a wolf by his side. It had a silver collar on, a kingdom crown around it's neck, and it's fur seemed to have some strange colours in places._  
I knew it!_  
What?_  
At one of the times he got me to stand with him at the feast, I caught a scent I was sure I recognised, but I couldn't place it because whoever it belonged to, I'd never met since becoming a werewolf. Now I know why – it was you._  
So that's why the Master told me to be unrecognisable. Looks like it worked._  
I watched you in that feast, did you know that? You looked out of place because you kept your hood up. It caught my attention._  
I guess that means you saw what I did then._  
Sure did. But I'm not telling. You're the one meant to be telling._  
I'll keep it short then, so I don't get too sidetracked by what happened.  
The Master greeted them, thanked them for coming, then he did something. They suddenly realised we were there and panicked, which was our cue to descend on them.  
I did just that, catching a girl who, had I been thinking sensibly, I would probably never have done what I did to. You know what's involved, I'm not going to repeat it.  
Some of the others chased down humans, a few fought over who's right it was to one, but no matter what they did, the noise was terrible. The screams and cries filled the air.  
I remember one thing very clearly about that particular time. The girl I caught made no attempt to escape, there was no resistance. I think she must have realised there was no choice and just accepted what was going to happen.  
It was probably the kindest thing she did for me, even if she didn't realise._  
You just prefer them to be willing._  
It does make it easier on me. I always have a guilty conscious when they resist.  
My earlier suspicion about blood being everywhere afterwards wasn't wrong. Somehow I'd managed to remain clean, but there were others who'd got it everywhere. Some of the stranger ones seemed to like it that way.  
At some point during the questionable fun, the Master and the wolf had disappeared again. Once it was over, the vampire who'd told them to take their seats – who'd also taken part – firmly insisted that we assist in cleaning up afterwards before we were allowed to leave again.  
That was the first and only time I saw Sora before his grand fight, although as you gathered, neither he or I actually recognised each other. I didn't really think about it much, all I knew was that the wolf was the pet that the Master had mentioned on my first day.


	5. Chapter 5

By a month before the arena was completed, we all knew about it and what would happen there. The Master would take on the last werewolf, the last enemy we had left, and kill him. Once that spread through us, any vampire who knew their way around a shovel or hammer went down to the arena and helped finish the construction. They unsettled the humans who'd been digging the cavern before them and there were complaints about their treatment, but after one such human was turned right there in front of his co-workers, the complaints dropped off.  
He was almost killed instead, but the Master happened to be there and insisted against it. He was the foreman for the humans, and kind of essential.  
Even I went down to help at one point, helping drag a cage into position. Strong as we are, the heavy reinforcements on it made it difficult for just one of us.  
We were provided with thick gloves, and calmly advised not to touch the cage without them. After one vampire ignored that and was rewarded with a large and clearly painful red mark on his hand, we all took extra care._  
I thought it was only the Master that was allergic to silver. He was the only one who ever showed a reaction._  
The only other time you saw a vampire handle silver was when Vidan put the collar on you, and he had gloves on._  
Guess that explains it._  
Only the handles on the base of the cage were safe to directly touch. As we installed it on one side of the arena, it became apparent why. The whole thing was hinged to swing upwards to let something out. Sora, obviously.  
Jake and I had a bit of fun of our own then. Once it was installed, one of us alone could raise it up. He lifted it, and I shoved one of the other vampires into the cage before Jake dropped it down again._  
You don't even get along with your own kind, do you?_  
I resent being made one of them without being consulted.  
I'd say I got away with it, but after we had a laugh at his misfortune, we turned to leave and found the Master blocking our path.  
It was the only time I ever saw him without that smile of his.  
He looked from me to Jake, then to the cage and back again, and sighed.  
"Whatever amuses you, I suppose," he murmured. "But if you must do it, at least wait until _after_ the event. Go release him, Jake. You, Riku, are going to do something different."  
"It was just a bit of fun," I told him.  
"It has nothing to do with your amusements. You are going to lead a group of other new vampires to a town and turn everyone you can find. There are to be absolutely no killings whatsoever, do I make myself clear?"  
"As mud," I muttered. "What town?"  
"Keep going east from here and you'll find it. It's impossible to miss it. There's no other place where it's a perpetual sunset.  
I knew exactly where he meant. Twilight Town. It was where I'd come from when I headed out in search of Sora._  
And where I headed out from when I first went to investigate the werewolf town._  
The Master must have realised I knew where he referred to and noticed my unease about it. I've only ever been there a few times, but I know Sora's been there more often. The people there aren't any threat to anyone._  
Except maybe Seifer._  
Even he only really acts in best interests of the town.  
"Remember where your loyalties lie," the Master told me. "and what you are now. What you are is more important than what you were."  
An order was an order though. He could have forced it on me, but it was probably just as preferable for me to go along with it as it was for him.  
"How many should I take?"  
"I've already seen to that for you. They await you at the eastern gate. You are the one in command of this mission, Riku. Do not fail me, and do not forget – not a single kill."  
There was none of the oily humour that was usually present in his voice as he said it. I'd never heard that tone from him before, and it carried all kinds of unpleasant suggestions of what might face me if I did fail.  
I changed before I left the fortress, picking up the clothes I'd worn at the feast. Not because I didn't want to be recognised – I doubt anyone there would recognise me anyway – but because it made me feel less like me, as if I could do this as someone else and not have it on my own conscious.  
I was left with a gang of about a dozen vampires, with the appearances of various ages. Some looked older than me, others younger. I've discovered that vampires do age, but at a far slower rate than humans do._  
Guess I'll be an old man long before you get anywhere near it then._  
Don't remind me. I don't like the idea of outliving all my friends.  
All of them were like me in one regard though – we'd all fed the day before. It would have been a very bad idea to have anyone along that hadn't fed so recently for obvious reasons.  
"You're coming with me," I told them bluntly when I reached them. I didn't stop, just continuing out of the town.  
"And why should we do anything you say?" one of them asked me.  
"Because we'll be finding out what your brains look like if you don't," I replied. "Assuming you have any, that is."  
That got a few laughs from the others. You have to do that sort of thing whenever you command vampires. Since we can't actually kill each other, it's always threats and the like.  
The farmsteads around the town watched us pass warily. Some had pitchforks in their hands, others had torches, as if daring us to descend on them.  
I've never been all that good with magic, but after I snuffed out a few torches and burnt the wooden handles of a pitchfork or two, they decided it was probably a better idea to go away.  
"Hardly the proper way to keep the fear," one of my gang remarked. I didn't bother to reply, instead I just tripped him up then quite deliberately walked over him. He didn't criticise me again after that._  
You sound almost as bad as they are._  
The Master put me in command. If I'd shown any sign of weakness, they'd never have listened to me._  
So you revert to what they do to keep them in line?_  
When with vampires, do as vampires do. I didn't like it, alright? I had to do it, but that doesn't mean I wanted to.  
Once past the farmsteads, we flew the rest of the way. It's so simple I didn't even have to ask how you do it. Just think about it, and you're away. You don't even have to think about it once you're off the ground.  
It's a nice way to travel actually. Once you get up a ways, you can see places farther off. I could even make out Twilight Town in the distance, or at least the clock tower there.  
I called a halt just outside and gave my gang the details.  
"We turn the lot of them and drag them back up to the fortress," I told them. "If any one of you kills any of them, I'll be handing you over to the Master to explain yourselves. I'm not getting into trouble because one of you couldn't do as you're told, so any mistakes you make are on your own heads. Now get down there and get to work."_  
Didn't you take part?_  
Of course I did. Orders were orders, after all. I turned Seifer myself, mostly because I didn't trust any of the others to handle him. He put up a lot of resistance, and got me a good few times before I finally managed it. I was sore for ages after that.  
Hayner was another I got. For all his bravado, in the face of a real vampire bearing down on him, he's just as much of a coward as anyone else, and a merry little chase he led me on too. Do you have any idea how easy it is to get lost in those underground passages?_  
Not really. I guess I have a better sense of direction than you do._  
A few of those we turned recovered quicker, and were immediately brought to me so I could tell them what they needed to know, then I turned them loose on the remaining unturned townsfolk. They probably had just as many reservations about at as I did, but every vampire took part meant one more reason for me to stay outside the station and direct the efforts instead.  
We gathered there when no one could find anyone else to turn. Those who hadn't recovered were brought there by those who had and my own gang. I told them to start getting them back, and that I'd remain there to ensure they hadn't missed anyone.  
That turned out to be a mistake.  
Enough had recovered that they were able to get all those who hadn't back in one trip without me, so I was left with what I thought was a deserted town to search.  
When I came down to check the sand lot, where the struggle tournaments take place, I caught sight of someone leaving it just opposite me. Naturally, I followed, keeping noise to a minimum by flying so I could find out who had escaped the others._  
Who was it?_  
Mickey. There was no mistaking him. I had no idea what he was doing here, but I was definitely in trouble now. If I left him and the Master found out, I'd be in serious trouble with him, but trying to turn the King...  
I was glad I'd had the foresight to take the clothes I had, pulling up the hood so he wouldn't recognise me. If I did it right, I could get this over with before he had a chance to stop me._  
Are you serious? You actually considered turning King Mickey?_  
It was probably the hardest choice I've ever had to make. Should I have crossed the Master and left him, or should I have crossed the friend who'd helped me find my way out of the darkness?  
I shadowed him for a long time, trying to make up my mind. He walked through the town, looking for any sign of life I guess. Maybe he knew what I'd been sent there to do, and was hoping he wasn't too late. I never got the chance to ask him, and I don't think I want to. It'd mean he'd find out it was me._  
He saw you?_  
No. The Master's words reminded me I had to do what I came here to do, and I decided I had to try. I came down low behind him, so I could grab him and get it over with. He paused as I came down, seeming to realise something was wrong and I got his Kingdom Key right to the neck. That thing hurts, and so did the wall I was flung into. How he manages to get that much power behind his swings I've no idea.  
For a moment when I hit the floor I thought he'd recognised me when he gave a surprised gasp, but I kept my head turned away, taking off again until I was out of his sight. I didn't dare use my own keyblade on him. He'd recognise mine too easily.  
A second time I warily followed him, trying to keep him from seeing me, and a second time I came in to try to get him. This time he went for my front, and it wasn't a slash, it was stab.  
I remember looking down, seeing it stuck in me, then my view went black. The next thing I knew, my room at the fortress formed around me. I felt dreadful. I could still feel the aches I'd picked up from Seifer, let alone what Mickey had done. What made it worse was that I felt like I wanted to throw up. I hadn't eaten anything since feeding though, so there was nothing to bring up. It's not the nicest way to recover from being killed – but I survived it because of what I am now.  
When I finally looked into the mirror I realised what had surprised Mickey. There was a deep gash in my neck – but no blood. Of course, blood only stays within me for a few hours after I feed, and I'd fed just the day before. It's kind of disturbing to see a cut without the blood.  
It was visibly healing though. It was like watching a phantom seamstress sew it back together.  
I pulled off the hoodie and my shirt, ignoring the hole left in both from his last attack and saw the last evidence of that fading away as well. The only proof of what had happened to me now was the damage to the clothes.  
I quickly glanced out the window, seeing the gang getting back. I'd have to tell the Master what had happened of course. I decided it was probably going to be more convincing if I was still wearing the shirt Mickey had cut through, pulling them back on before I left to go looking for him.


	6. Chapter 6

I'd hoped to find the Master without anyone else around, but there was no such luck for me. He was in the audience chamber, and as usual when he's in there, other vampires filled either side of the room like parasites. They don't even have any purpose there, except being there._  
They were good for getting the doors open when I made my escape._  
It was probably the most they'd ever done in centuries. They needed the exercise and excitement you gave them.  
Anyway, this pretty much forced me to have to report back in front of others as well, something I wasn't really happy about given that I had sort of failed. I'd turned the town, but he wanted them all – and that meant Mickey.  
He was still lacking his usual smile, but he listened patiently while I went through what we did, pointing out a few key people that had been turned, then told him about Mickey and his... killing me. There were a few sniggers when I mentioned that, and there were two less vampires in the room after I turned my keyblade on them for it. There would have been more, but I was harshly ordered to stand down by the Master. It was the only actual order he gave me and forced me to obey. You can't stand against his will if he forces it on you like that.  
"You are certain there were no others in the town?" he asked me finally.  
"I searched it myself. Everyone turned, except him."  
"Do you think you could have turned him if you had kept the others with you?"  
"No," I answered with absolute certainty. "If Mickey could do that to me with one stab, then he'd have no trouble handling a group of us." He watched me expectantly for a few moments, so I continued, "You saw how easily my own keyblade dealt with those two," I gestured to where they had been. "Mickey's had one for a lot longer than I have, and I hate to admit it, but he's probably far more skilled than I am with it. Only really overwhelming numbers would do it, and even then a huge number of us would still end up back here like I did before we got anywhere. I don't think it's worth it." I didn't want to mention that I didn't want to make Mickey one of us. Can you imagine what it would be like, having a King that periodically has to snack on his own subjects?  
He continued to watch me for some time, then finally, more to the others than me, he told us, "Let that be a lesson. Those with keyblades are high in risk, though as Riku himself proves not impossible to gain."  
"What of the werewolf, Master?" another asked, and there was a brief murmur confirming this curiosity. As far as I knew, it was just a werewolf, this was interesting news to me. He had a keyblade too?  
"He is my responsibility alone. I will bring about the end of our enemy myself."  
"Then why turn others to be present?" yet another one asked. "Should we not be allowed to see his fall?"  
"Enough of this!" he snapped, and everyone flinched back from that. "My reasons are none of your concern. You will do what you are told, all of you. If I say to bring me turned humans to be present, then there will be newly turned humans present."  
"You can't deny us the chance to see you do it, Father," a young sounding voice told him gently but firmly, and a lot of the irritation faded from his expression. It became almost soft._  
Samantha. I didn't know she ever went into his throne room. She once told me she didn't like it there._  
Like it or not, she was there. She pushed through the other vampires at first, until they realised it was the Master's daughter, then they just parted around her. She was just a head shorter than me, and with the polished circlet on her golden hair, she seemed almost like a princess. She clearly had some eminence among us. I did note that her eyes were very dark, darker than I let mine get before I fed. Evidently she'd learned to control it better than I had.  
She stopped beside me, arms crossed. "They killed Mother, remember. You can't tell me I'm not allowed to see you get back at them for it."  
I thought she liked you, Sora?_  
She did, but she sort of wanted me to lose to him, or at least give in. She also couldn't really act like that around the other vampires really._  
Guess that's true.  
He passed a hand over eyes that suddenly seemed weary and full of pain before he answered, "No. No, I can't deny you that. You deserve that much."  
"And what of the rest of us?"  
"I will... make arrangements for them to see," he gave in. "But not be present. I will not go back on that. Only the newest of the turned shall be present."  
This seemed to satisfy her, and she left again. With a wave of his hand, he dismissed me too.  
I caught up with her outside. I had a curiosity I wanted to get out the way.  
"Can I... talk with you a moment?" I asked her hesitantly.  
"What do you want?" It wasn't exactly the nicest response.  
"Is he really..."  
"My father? Of course, did you think I called him Father for the fun of it?"  
"No, I just... didn't know he had any children."  
"I'm the only one left," she told me with an edge in her tone. "_They_ killed my brothers and sisters. Mother too."  
"I guess you must really want that werewolf gone then."  
I couldn't miss the indecisiveness that caused, but she told me, "Of course. Wouldn't you?"  
"I'm still sort of new," I admitted. Alright, it had been almost six months since I was turned – but vampires look at time a bit differently. It's how Jake could shrug off a few centuries just as easily as you'd shrug off a week._  
Picking it up already, huh? I wonder what you'll be like when you reach your first hundred?_  
If I can help it, not that much different to now. That's if I don't get myself killed so I don't have to watch everyone I know grow old and die._  
Stop being so depressing about it._  
"New or not," she said. "Father makes sure people know what they're like." There was a faint hint of uncertainty when she said it. Very faint, but there all the same.  
"He did tell me. I don't really like them, but if there's just one left is it really worth the trouble?"  
"One werewolf could share it's curse with hundreds of others."  
"Not if he's your father's pet like this."  
"Maybe. But Father isn't going to change his mind." She sighed, then said, "Go away. I don't want to talk about it anymore."  
Even she didn't seem to get along with other vampires. She hadn't seemed all that happy about talking to me in the first place._  
She thought you were like all the rest. You know, like you were acting back at Twilight Town._  
I thought I asked you not to keep bringing that up.

The Master's 'arrangements' turned out to be simply to have vampire-run camera crews in the audience, which would broadcast it up to screens in the fortress above. Vampires are somewhat conservative when it comes to technology, preferring to keep to the older ways, but since this would let any of us watch it anywhere, the usual conservative argument was minimal.  
On the evening before it was due to happen – I'd finally sorted out my sleeping hours by then, so I wasn't just getting up – there was a knock on my door.  
"What do you want?" I asked a little ungraciously, I'll admit. I would need to feed tomorrow, and that always makes me a little uncivil.  
"Well that's nice," Jake remarked, letting himself in. He looked out of breath, as if he'd been running hard. He glanced briefly in my mirror, then leaned against the wall. "We've got to get out of here."  
I looked at his own eyes, then said, "It can't be to feed. You look like you did that earlier."  
"Just the other day. This is way more important, Riku."  
"What then?"  
"We can't be here when the Master takes on the werewolf. There's a rumour going around that if the Master loses, it'll be the end of us all. I don't know about you, but after being alive this long, I don't want to get killed off just because he loses."_  
I wonder how they found out about it? He's wrong anyway._  
I know, but rumours are often inaccurate, and this one was no exception.  
I had to admit that dying wasn't something I wanted to do just yet – otherwise I wouldn't keep on feeding.  
"Aren't we forbidden to leave the town?" I asked him.  
"No. That's just a general rule. The Master likes to keep us under his thumb, but he doesn't actually order us to stay here. We can leave any time we like, and now would be a good time. There's others too, we're going to gather at Twilight Town, since it's abandoned after you turned everyone there, and hope that if the Master loses, we're out of range."  
"You're actually afraid, aren't you?"  
"Aren't you? We can't die, Riku – but if he loses..."  
"It's just a werewolf," I shrugged, sitting up. "Surely he can handle it."  
"You won't believe this," he shook his head. "He's a... I can't pronounce the word, but it means he's more powerful than the other werewolves. Even though he's the only one left. He's like our Master, but for them or something. We've got to leave, Riku! If we don't leave soon, we won't reach there in time!"  
"I'll meet you in Twilight Town then," I told him, starting to gather what few belongings I had in my room. "If you make it, that is."  
"I'll make it, I don't care what it takes, I'll make it. I'll see you there, there's a few others I gotta warn." And with that, he opened the door and was gone again.  
All I actually had in my room was the change of clothes I'd had made here, so I stuck them in the bag they'd come in. I travel pretty light.  
Given that the Master probably wouldn't look on this nicely, I was a little wary of what might happen if we all left at once. A look out the window showed a bit of activity in the town, presumably some of the others leaving, but none in the skies._  
Oh, come on Riku. You didn't?_  
It was the perfect way out. No traffic, no one in the way. I just opened the window and jumped.  
It's hard to start to fly when you're falling, incidentally._  
Riku! What if you'd hit something?_  
Then I'd just reappear in my room. I managed to get going before that happened though, and I didn't look back.

Twilight Town was, of course, abandoned. Forcibly, after what I'd done. Thankfully there was no sign of Mickey.  
It looked like I was the first to arrive, but I wasn't alone for long. Apparently I'd given some of the others ideas, as several small groups of vampires flew in, landing nearby. One of them had carried one of the Master's screens with him, and with the help of others attempted to get it working so we could still watch if it worked here.  
We finally did get it working, but only in the last minutes of the fight. All we saw was what Sora calls his Hybrid form just as he defeated the Master.  
A vast groan seemed to come not just from the vampires we could see watching, but from those of us watching. We felt no different, but the ones there in the arena...  
One of the camera-vampires turned the camera on the crowds nearby, very briefly giving me a view of a shocked looking Kairi before it stopped and showed those nearby.  
There was not a single red eye among them – but neither was there a single dead person.  
Then the screen died out on us.  
The Master had fallen, and we were still vampires.  
Some of us were like me – wishing we'd been there so we could have lost what we were too. Others wanted to gather together and try to fill the void the Master had left.  
I left the town that night. Without the Master, I had no reason to stick around and do what any other vampire told me, and I didn't want any part of telling others what to do. I also knew that the residents of Twilight Town were probably present and now unturned, and they'd be returning there soon.  
I didn't know where I was going to go, or what I'd do, but I didn't plan to stick around. If was going to keep feeding, I'd have to find somewhere I could do it for a time, and hope I didn't get discovered.


	7. Chapter 7

Sora's had to go off to see to that ritual of his, and I was getting a little tired of his constant interruptions, so I'm doing this bit without him. He can catch up with us later.

Like I said, I had no idea where I was going to go. Twilight Town wasn't going to be safe. The more of us that gathered in one place, the more chance there was that one of us would get caught. Since the residents knew everything about us after I'd turned them, no doubt they'd swiftly dispatch any of us they found.  
Going back to Vampire central was also out of the question. The werewolf was probably still there, and I had no wish to get killed again, without coming back afterwards – unpleasant as that is, I'd rather be able to come back to it.  
Wolford was in ruins still, and anywhere else was somewhat distant. There were only a few places I could reach inside of a week, and one or two that I might make, if I fed as soon as I got there. That would have been risky business though. I'd stand a chance of being seen and run off before I even managed to settle in.  
In the end, I went to Traverse Town. New people are always appearing there, giving me ample opportunity to find someone that wasn't known yet.  
I took a room in the hotel in the Second District. This is more important than you might think. The place I call home – even if it's just a temporary home I'm staying in – is where I reappear after being killed. So when I took that room, it shifted from my old room at Vampire central to that room I rented. I don't know what happens if I don't have anywhere I call home, and to be honest, I don't really want to find out.  
I found early on that moogles don't make very good targets. I don't know how they do it, but every one of them seems to know me, as if they keep in contact with each other. They even knew what I was!  
I did apologise to the moogle I'd almost tried to snack on, to which it replied, "You're a vampire, kupo. It's to be expected."  
"You won't tell anyone, will you?" I asked him, slightly embarrassed.  
"Of course not, kupo. It's your secret to tell people."  
You can't do anything but love those little guys. They pop up everywhere and aren't easily scared off. I hear there was even one that set up shop in the Organization's headquarters. Now _there's_ bravery for you.  
This is not to say that feeding was an easy task for me. Every time I'd done it before, it had been either with Jake or another vampire who'd keep watch. Feeding alone is not so easy. Not only do I have to try to concentrate on finding someone, I have to keep watch while I'm doing it and hope I'm not seen.  
Whenever I did feed, I went back to the outfit I'd picked up at Vampire central so I wouldn't be so easily recognised. The inconvenience of this was that people started talking about 'that stranger in black' and came up with all kinds of wild theories. One rumour even suggested it was Sora trying not to be recognised, though that begs the question of why he'd want to do that.  
One relative newcomer – Calix was his name, I believe – knew about our kind though, and that marked him as a risk immediately.  
He started collecting all the information he could about the mysterious stranger that went about only at night. Perhaps even more inconveniently, he stumbled across the hiding spot I'd stashed the bodies of my unfortunate victims. If he'd discovered it just one day earlier, I'd have had a right problem. I wouldn't have had anywhere to hide that night's victim.  
I was going to have to do something about him. He was getting too close to finding out about me.  
When I came down the stairs to the hotel one morning, I paused, overhearing him talking to Leon. They were only just in sight from the stairs.  
"It's there on all of them," he was telling Leon. "In exactly the same place. Two tiny puncture marks."  
Uh oh.  
"Yes," Leon murmured. "And?"  
"Don't you see? It's a pattern. There's something out there doing this."  
"I still don't see where the stranger comes into it."  
"There are these creatures on the world I came from. They look human, but they have to take the blood from other creatures to live. The marks are identical. This stranger-"  
"You think he's one of them."  
"It's the obvious answer."  
"And this means..." he left it hanging meaningfully.  
"It has to be destroyed, but I don't dare go after it alone. I have to have some help with this, Leon."  
"I'm a little busy. Maybe you should pay a call on Riku upstairs. He might be willing to help."  
Are you crazy? Me, go hunting for myself? Let alone that I knew if he saw my eyes, he'd know it was me.  
I quickly headed back up to my room, glanced out the window and saw no one around, so climbed out and dropped down the roof to a quiet side path so no one would notice me. He'd have to do it without me.  
The problem I had now was getting back into my room after he left it alone, as no one had seen me leave the hotel. Even more of a problem was what I would do if I were seen around the town while supposedly in my room.  
Thankfully, I didn't have to wait long. I skulked in that side path just out of sight and reluctantly practised some of the other abilities we vampires have.  
As Sora knows, we can pick up on other people's thoughts. Believe me, it's not easy. Your average human is actually thinking about at least a dozen things at once. We can't keep track of more than one human at a time without a lot of skill, something I was lacking.  
I touched briefly on Leon's mind, and found that he really wasn't all that curious about it – which isn't like him, to be honest, but I wasn't going to complain if it kept me from being discovered.  
Then I had a look into Calix' mind. He was definitely on to me. He didn't know it was me he was after, but he had more than enough that if any one person happened to recognise me while I was out as their stranger, I was done for.  
He also seemed puzzled by the lack of my presence in my room, waiting for quite some time with some insistence. He even broke into my room and had a look for me. If he'd looked under the bed, he'd have found the only evidence he'd need to prove it was me.  
He didn't though, in part because there isn't enough room under the bed for me to hide, but mostly because I went to work with another ability, influencing the thoughts of another. That really isn't easy, and you have to be very careful. The mind isn't a place to be playing around without care. Nudge the wrong part, and you turn them into the mental equivalent of a cabbage. While it would have been a simple solution, it wasn't how I wanted to deal with him.  
Instead I just suggested that maybe he'd just missed me, and should come back another time. I did try to get him not to call on me again, but he had a fairly strong mind, and it was persistent enough that I couldn't blot that idea out entirely.  
He finally left my room and went back downstairs. I persuaded him not to tell anyone he hadn't found me there, then returned to my room before he left, just in case he happened to glance down the street into my hiding place.  
Normally, when I feed I leave it as long as I dare because I really don't like doing it. I can feed before then of course, and it adds to the time I have to wait until the next necessary feeding time. If I have three days left for example, then I can bump that up to ten days by snacking on someone else.  
I wasn't due to feed for a few days anyway, but Calix was starting to get a little too close for my comfort. I had to do something, and if I eliminated him... well, people would notice – but without him, they wouldn't know enough to link me to my other victims. I hoped.  
So that night, I changed into the patched up and familiar hoodie, my hunting outfit I guess, and headed out into the town.  
I was seen, naturally. Calix hadn't told many people about what I was, so of the few people out that late, most kept to themselves or pointed me out to nearby friends.  
One of them went running to wake Calix though, and that was the whole point of it. Luring him out into the open.  
He caught up with me in the Second District. There's a little side road just between the restaurant and the Luggage store you might know of. I made sure he was following me, then headed up there, quickly flying up out of sight. It's a dead end path, so naturally when he warily looked in, he didn't find me and began to search it.  
I dropped down silently behind him, stalking along until he was almost at the end. One hand over his mouth kept him from crying out, and a swift jab to the knees made them buckle. He struggled, trying to get me off him, but he didn't have the strength to pry me off even if it wasn't for the vampiric strength.  
I forced him down to keep him still, half crouched as I made the bite and took his blood from him. He knew what was going on, and grew more frantic as he felt me draining him.  
I would have simply left him, or moved his body somewhere else, but someone else had other plans.  
Unknown to me, Leon had followed Calix when he came looking for me. As I finished him off, he was there at the end of the alleyway.  
"What's this?" he exclaimed, seeing what was happening. "Oh no you don't!"  
He came down to stop me, but it was too late for Calix, I gave an angry hiss and made to take off, but Leon was too quick. For the second time in my life, I looked down to find a blade stuck in me. He'd hit me from behind, leaving only the tip showing through, with the faintest hints of blood on it. I had just fed, after all.  
Then I was back in the hotel room, feeling horrible again. This wasn't turning out the way I had intended. I stumbled around a bit, and cleaned up the wound. Since I'd fed, this one actually had bled a little. Not much though, as the blood hadn't quite reached where Leon had stabbed me.  
Once I was cleaned up, I changed back into my usual gear, packing my belongings again.  
I scanned the area with my mind to see where Leon was and found he was still with Calix' body, so with some safety I was able to sign myself out of the hotel and leave. I did stop by the moogles before I left, asked them to keep on keeping my secret, and to tell anyone who asked that I'd gone looking for Sora again.  
Then I left and went back on the road again, trying to find somewhere to stay once more. At least this time I'd got in a chance to feed before I left, opening up more places I could try to take refuge at for a time. It seemed unlikely that I'd be able to stay in any one place for long. Sooner or later, someone would find me out like Calix had.


	8. Chapter 8

It's amazing how much easier it is to get this done without Sora around. Quieter too. I wonder if he knows just how annoying he can get.  
Better not say too much more. He does happen to hold one of the only sure-fire ways to make sure I don't come back, after all.

I moved about a great deal for a long while after the incident in Traverse Town. As a general rule, I never stayed in one place after I'd fed four times there, because by then people started to notice. As nothing really major happened in any of them, I won't go into too much detail. We'd be here for ages if I tried to do that.  
First was Agrabah, a place I came to dislike a great deal. I swear the sand there gets everywhere. I used to empty almost a full shoe of sand every night. It wasn't easy to find people there either, and I was forced to leave after only two times.  
After that, I moved to Halloween town. Naturally, I blended in far better there, but it's probably one of the hardest places to find anyone to snack on. I managed to stay for a lot longer because it was easier to avoid suspicion, but even they began to notice the strange happenings after a time.  
Hollow Bastion, though it now goes by it's original name of Radiant Garden was my third stop. Much like Traverse Town, a lot of people pass through here often enough that I could stay for a little longer. The residents are somewhat more adept at noticing things like people randomly going missing, and it was there I came very close to being discovered then by those irritating little pests who call themselves the Gullwings. I moved on quickly after that incident.  
Finally, I returned to Vampire central, where I managed to stay for all of a single day before being discovered. During the short time I was there, I picked up a second outfit, matching my hunting one but in different colours, ones more suited to urban settings so I wouldn't stick out so might. Mostly greys, in case you're wondering, but there's a few greens that seem to do well as well.  
It was during that time there that I overheard that someone had been rebuilding Wolford. Naturally, I was still trying to find out what had happened to Sora, not to mention Kairi. Despite everything, the three of us are very close. Even Sora will look out for me, even when it's kinda stupid of him to. But what are friends for, huh?  
When they ran me out of the old Vampire town, I decided this was worth investigating and ran on down to have a look.  
Reconstruction was almost complete as it seemed to me. It was still made of wood naturally, but there was no sign of the wreckages that had been there last time I'd visited. There was even a moogle store that had opened.  
Moogles, as I've remarked before, seem to know everything, and they're one of the few I can talk to openly without being treated differently, so they were my first call there. They told me that only one of the residents from before it's destruction remained here now, but he'd brought others with him. Only the four of them had worked on the town originally, but some people had decided they wanted to come here and live a quieter, more peaceful life out here in the countryside. Most of them used to be vampires as well. As they joined the small population, they lent a hand, and the town's restoration progressed far quicker.  
They wouldn't tell me who those original four were though, saying something about a secret that had to be kept. I knew they wouldn't tell me; it was the same reason they wouldn't tell anyone else about my own secret.  
I had to hope that the people here wouldn't recognise what I was so I could actually settle in for a time.  
The hotel wasn't entirely finished at the time, so I found the receptionist and asked her if she minded if I helped out.  
"Oh, you don't want to be asking me," she told me. "You want to be asking him." She pointed up behind me to a still open section of roof. Along one of the crossbeams was, you guessed it, Sora.  
"Hey, Sora!" I called to him. "What's so interesting up there?"  
"Riku? It is! I'll be right down – don't go anywhere!"  
Same old Sora I've always known.  
He was more agile than I remembered, dropping down from the beam and swinging down the nearby scaffold without actually landing on it until he dropped to the floor nearby.  
"I'll be back in a bit," he assured the receptionist, and beckoned for me to go back outside with him. "So what have you been up to?"  
"Looking for you again. I heard you got involved in this village, so came on down to have a look."  
"We're almost finished with the rebuilding. Kairi and me have a place of our own here now. We figured it's about time we had a place to call home again, somewhere we can come back to whenever we want."  
"What's wrong with any of the other towns you've been to on your travels?"  
"Nothing. But this one I got to build myself. Well, with help. Donald and Goofy mostly, but after a while others started coming to help out as well. I started it though, and I built my house completely on my own."  
"Does it rattle in the wind?" I grinned slyly at him.  
"Of course not – I built it better than that."  
"You sure about that?"  
"Hey, cut..." he didn't finish his sentence, probably because he'd looked at me – and you know what he saw. "Riku, when did that happen?"  
"When did what happen?" I asked, trying to play the innocent.  
"Your eyes... they're... different."  
"It wasn't by choice," I told him. "I didn't get the chance to turn it down."  
Sora looked unusually serious for a while, then continued on.  
"Not here," he said. "There are a few here who don't take kindly to... those like you." There was a slight edge to his voice as he said it.  
"I guess that means you know more-"  
"I said not here, Riku. Wait until we get back to my place."  
"Suit yourself."  
I have to admit, his small cottage really is built pretty well. It's a solidly built, two storey house, with a fair sized garden. Roomy on the inside as well.  
Once we got inside, he seemed to turn unusually unkind.  
"Just what's happened to you, Riku? Why did you take up their offer?"  
"It wasn't an offer. It was forced on me."  
"So why weren't you up at the arena when..." he paused for a moment then continued, "When your Master was beaten?"  
"There was a rumour going around that we'd all get killed with him if he was beaten," I shrugged. "I might not want to be a vampire, but I'd like to go on living a bit longer, so I left before it happened."  
"You should have stayed." It was almost an accusation. "You'd have been cured of it."  
"I know. It's a bit late now."  
"So now what? You're coming here looking for another snack?"  
"Sora, I don't want this. I don't like having to do it, but I can't help it – I have to do it to keep on living."  
"Not in my town."  
"Your town?"  
"You heard me. Several of the others insisted I become it's chief."  
"Fine. I won't do it here then. I can't help what I've become though."  
"Just watch it, Riku. If I find the slightest sign you've been snacking on anyone here..."  
"I said I won't Sora, what more do you want?"  
"Nothing you can give me."  
"Then can we just forget about it? I promise not to go after anyone here, just don't treat me any different."  
"We'll see," he muttered.  
It wasn't exactly what you'd call a happy reunion.  
There was something different about him too, I was sure of it. He'd seemed to become more antagonistic since the moment he realised what I was. And how did he know about us, anyway? Kairi I could have understood, she'd been taken by the vampires. Strangely, when I talked to her about it, she didn't seem to remember that, nor did she seem to know about any of the tell-tale signs of being a vampire. I persuaded her that my curiosity was just from some rumours I'd heard while outside, and quietly enforced them with a little very careful mental meddling. I don't like to do that often, particularly not to her, but there was definitely something going on that I didn't know about.  
True to my promise, I never once hunted in Wolford. I always left and dropped in on the ex-vampire town instead. Sure, it wasn't exactly the safest place for me to go, but it was the closest besides Twilight Town, and I had no wish to go back there.  
At Kairi's insistence, the guest room in their house was given to me. I was holding out for a place of my own, or at least a hotel room for as long as I was here, but she was adamant I take it, and just as stubborn when Sora objected about it. He didn't like the idea of me living with him for some reason.  
Like it or not, it became my home too, and that put me in an unparalleled position to observe him and find out what was up.  
I found he was resistant to my ability to touch on minds, which was interesting. Up until then, only the moogles had exhibited this trait, and it raised my curiosity even further.  
I noticed that he was far more protective, not just over Kairi but over the town itself. He took his position as it's chief seriously, and saw it as his responsibility to make sure everyone had what they wanted. He's not good at it, but at least he isn't bad at it.  
Whenever something vexed him, he didn't exactly get irritated or angry like he used to, but instead just seemed to grow even more determined to deal with it, and he'd remain calm while he did so. This wasn't like him, he used to take it out on Heartless or crates – something he could vent on without actually hurting anyone.  
He also didn't rush into anything. There was an attack of Heartless on the town several times, and every time it happened he listened patiently to whoever reported it to him, and then went off to deal with it. There was never any kind of hurry, but he never let them take a single Heart in his town.  
And then there was this strange behaviour that happened once a month, usually in late evening. He'd make an excuse, often unconvincing even for him, and go to bed early. Kairi and I both clearly heard him lock his door after him. She told me he'd refused to explain it, but had insisted it wasn't her fault at all.  
This flummoxed even me. Why was Sora acting so oddly?  
When the curiosity got the better of me, I finally gave in and did something about it. I waited until Kairi had also gone to bed, then listened at Sora's door. I could hear something in there, but it didn't sound like Sora.  
I picked the lock on the door and looked warily in. The sounds came from a wolf dozing on his bed. I recognised it immediately – it was the same one I'd seen when the Master first made me attend a feast. It even had the kingdom crown around it's neck.  
Sora deliberately makes his door creak though, so as I edged in, it creaked, and the wolf woke up, showing icy blue eyes that looked almost perfectly like Sora's – but surely this couldn't be him? Unless he was the werewolf, but I couldn't bring myself to believe that. I admitted it did explain a few things, but it just didn't seem likely to me. After everything I'd heard about werewolves, I couldn't believe that one of my best friends could possibly be such a creature. This was before I learned the truth about them remember – I had a very low opinion of them.  
The wolf was on it's feet in moments, growling as it approached. I didn't want to wake Kairi, so I backed out of the room again. It nudged the door shut after me.  
It had been a strange encounter, that much was certain, but there didn't seem to be anything else I could do. If he _was_ a werewolf... well, I had to hope our friendship would prevent him from turning on me.


	9. Chapter 9

The morning after my first encounter with the wolf in Sora's room, he waited until Kairi had left before he showed any sign he knew what had happened last night.  
"Stay out of my room," he told me in a low tone. "You knock if you ever want to come in, and you wait until I let you in."  
"What would I want in your room?" I asked, feigning innocence. "It's nothing to do with me."  
"That's right. And don't forget it. Don't think I didn't see what you did last night."  
"I was worried about you. Kairi wouldn't tell me why you did it, so I wanted to find out."  
"It's none of your business," he answered bluntly, and left without giving me the chance to respond.  
I ignored his insistence on keeping out, of course. As soon as I was certain he'd gone back to working on the hotel reconstruction, I went back and had another look.  
Sora's never really been one for being tidy, but his room was unusually so for him. The bed was a mess, but nothing else was untidy.  
Besides the bed, there was little furniture in the room. A desk under the window with several draws down one side, each one with it's own lock. A wardrobe on one wall, and a cupboard behind the door, but nothing more.  
The draws were locked, of course. I could have picked them the way I had his bedroom door the night before, but the locks were smaller, and that makes it a little harder to do it without leaving some evidence. And I'm not really all that skilled at doing it.  
His wardrobe seemed unused, having very little extra in it. I hardly expected to find any clues in there anyway.  
There was a clear trail though, if you looked closely. There were small scratches on the top of the desk and on the uncarpeted floor. There were several deeper ones beside the bed, but there was no sign at all on the bed. Not even the tuft of fur I was expecting to find from the wolf.  
It was as if the bed had been tided, then deliberately made a mess to make it look as if it had been slept in.  
The answer was underneath the bed, rolled into a tight ball. Bedsheets, with various tears in. Laid out, it was fairly clear that something big had done it.  
Everything pointed toward the wolf again, and with it came the continued implications that he was a werewolf. Or _the_ werewolf. We'd been told he was the last one – but everything we'd been told suggested that werewolves would do anything to gain the upper hand, and that implied they'd inflict their curse on others at any opportunity.  
No matter how many times that stared me in the face, I just couldn't see Sora being on of these barbaric, feral creatures. We were told that anyone who became one would lose most of their humanity and be more like a wild wolf than a human being, that they'd steal food rather than hunt it, or hunt it just to stop others from having it. Some said that they even ate other humans, when they weren't judged to be fit enough to become a werewolf in their own right.  
But either this wasn't true, or Sora wasn't one of them. Either way, there was something going on, and I was determined to find out what.  
I put the torn sheets back where I'd found them, as close to how I'd found them as I could. Before I left, I checked the window. There was a kind of lever on the inside that pushed it up and locked there until pushed again. It left just enough room for a wolf like the one I'd seen come or go.  
I could have gone through the draws, but decided against it. I'd done enough in his room for now, I didn't want to leave him with any sign I'd been there at all.  
I didn't have anything to do here yet, so despite his mysterious dislike of me, I went back up to the hotel and offered to help out again.  
"How do you think you're going to help?" he asked me bluntly.  
"Who did most of the work on our raft?" I reminded him.  
"That was a raft. This is far more complicated."  
"Are you trying to tell me something, Sora?"  
"Fine. Help out. See if I care. Just don't bother me."  
His distaste of me didn't carry over to the others working with us. Not after I'd hauled up some of the larger, heavier beams without any help. Sora stalked off muttering to himself after a few of these displays and refused to come anywhere near me for the rest of the day.  
Word got around, and one or two residents seemed a little more wary of me because of it. When I took a break – not that I needed it, but the others were taking one, and I wasn't going to do their work single-handed – one of the families who'd heard about me passed by, the two adults throwing surreptitious glances in my direction. Their son seemed completely oblivious to it, however.  
I poked about a little in the minds of the adults, and found they had been present when the Master had been defeated. Like me, they hadn't had a choice in the matter, and had welcomed the return to humanity.  
My appearance here with the clear signs of what they'd left behind was not a welcome sight.  
The moogle store was just opposite the hotel, and it was there they stopped. The mother of the child tried to watch me without being noticed while her husband did whatever business he had there.  
Their son noticed this, looked right at me, then turned to his mother and asked something. She talked to him rapidly for a few minutes, shaking her head insistently.  
"I don't believe you," he called out at one point. "I'm going to ask him."  
"Isaac, no!" she called after him as he ran over the road to me. I'd been leaning against the outside of the hotel, but glanced down when he approached.  
"My mom says you eat people," he said accusingly.  
"She'd also prefer you didn't talk to me," I answered.  
With that childish lack of fear, he stood there unafraid and asked, "Why? Are you going to eat me?"  
"Of course not. I've never eaten anyone."  
"Then why does she say you're nasty?"  
Taking care not to do anything his parents couldn't see, I came down to his level, crouching. I noticed the mother hastily getting the father's attention, making him see, and he started to come over.  
"Not everyone's made the same way," I explained. "There's something different about me that they know about, and think that makes me dangerous to be around. But just between you and me? I've got it completely under control."  
"So you're not going to be nasty?"  
"Not in the slightest. You don't have to worry about a thing."  
"Come away from him, Isaac," his father called, having approached. He was watching me with a look of undisguised hatred. "Leave him alone."  
"He's not going to do anything, dad."  
"Yes, I expect that's what he would say."  
"You know what I am," I told him. "And I'm not like that."  
"Why should I be expected to believe you?"  
"I trust him," Isaac said, but I shook my head.  
"You ought to listen to your parents, not me. If they think it's better you stay away from me, then I'd go with that."  
"But you're not bad. You said so."  
"I know. But you should listen to him all the same."  
He was taken back across to the store without another word, where his mother stared chiding him about being irresponsible and reckless. It seemed a little harsh to me, but I had other things on my mind. They did know what I was, and they saw no place for me here.  
I hid it well, but their reaction to me hit me hard. It didn't matter where I went, if anyone knew what I was then I wasn't going to be welcome or liked, no matter who I was. It went with what I was.  
Later, when we were all back at Sora's home, I kept to myself mostly, and turned in early that night. I didn't want to aggravate him any more than I already had.

The morning after, I stayed there instead of intruding myself on either him or Kairi. I heard them talking for a while, then Kairi told him not to slam the door, which he ignored.  
Just after, there was a tentative knock at my door. I didn't bother to answer it, instead staying on my bed, trying to decide if it was worth pretending to sleep.  
"I know you're in there Riku," she told me. "Are you going to let me in or not?" She weathered the silence for a bit, then let herself in anyway. My room doesn't have a lock on it, since it was originally meant to be a guest room.  
"I guess Sora had something to say about me then."  
"Not exactly. All he said was that you'd done something he didn't like."  
"I already told him, I didn't have a choice in the matter," I sighed. "It's not like I wanted it."  
"Do you want to talk about it?"  
"It's not going to solve anything, Kairi. Sora's just going to keep on being like this about me until someone persuades him to hear my side of it, and he's too stubborn to do that."  
"I could talk with him for you."  
"Don't trouble yourself over it. I don't want him to turn on you because you're trying to help me."  
"He wouldn't do that, Riku."  
"Maybe. I'd rather not chance it."  
Kairi shook her head and left me alone again.  
I stayed there for some time after I heard her leave too, then finally decided to satisfy my curiosity, and went to those draws in Sora's desk.  
They were unlocked this time, and that made me immediately suspicious. I continued though, examining the contents of each in turn.  
The top one was empty, and the second just had a few things I assumed were of some value to him.  
In the third though, I found several sheets of paper loose, numbered so they were in order, with his writing on.  
You can guess what they were. You've probably read it yourself.  
They confirmed the signs I'd been trying to ignore, proving that he was a werewolf, and as I read I found a lot of my views changed. What I'd been told about their kind didn't seem to be as true as I'd thought.  
I realised it had been him that I'd seen with the Master, and that it had been him who'd brought the Master down. I learned that Kairi didn't remember her time at the vampire fortress, because she'd been persuaded to forget.  
After I finished reading, I set the pages back in order and put them away, thinking this over. Things were not quite how they'd seemed.  
Then I heard the front door close, and quickly headed back to my own room flying just above the floor so whoever it was didn't hear my hurry back.  
When I heard footsteps on the stairs, I opened my door a crack to peer out, and saw it was Kairi. I almost opened the door, but something told me not to, so instead I touched on her mind lightly.  
She'd seen me, but she hadn't told Sora. She seemed just as curious about what I'd seen in Sora's room, and had even seen me put the sheets back in the draw.  
I was torn momentarily. If I did nothing, then she might find Sora's account of what happened to him, and remember what she'd been made to forget. On the other hand, if I stopped her and Sora found out, he'd know that I knew about them. Not to mention that she'd just try again another time.  
After a brief moment's hesitation, I reluctantly altered her memory slightly, so she believed that she had never seen me in Sora's room, and that it had been her curiosity about Sora's behaviour that prompted her to have a look.  
Sorry about that Kairi, but I had to do something, and if Sora found out that I'd been poking around in his room... alright, so given what he was, and how he described the scent of vampires, he probably already knew or would soon find out I was there, but at the time it seemed like all I could do without shedding any suspicion on myself.  
Kairi did find his account, and she read it. I don't know how exactly, but I felt her forgotten memories come back to her as she read the last of it.  
Now I had a problem on my hands. If she took it as badly as she had the first time...  
The door went again, signifying Sora returning home. Like I had, Kairi quickly stashed the account back where it had been and rushed out and down to meet him. I close my door, and hoped I could pretend I'd never left my room.


	10. Chapter 10

It was somewhat awkward between us for the next few days, each of us knowing things the other two didn't. I knew what Sora was, that Kairi knew too, and that unknown to her, I was the reason she'd found out.  
Kairi knew what Sora had done, and seemed to be taking it better than she had the last time, but had no idea what I was.  
Sora knew what I was, but had no idea that both Kairi and I knew about him, and he still had his bad attitude toward me because of what I was.  
None of us could really talk openly about it because we all knew different things, and as far as Sora knew, he couldn't talk to either of us because we didn't know about him.  
Finally I gave up on holding out, waited until it was late and only he and I were awake and felt I had to do something.  
"Sora."  
"What?"  
"Don't get loud over this will you? I don't want to disturb Kairi."  
"Over what?"  
"I was in your room the day after I saw you as a wolf in there."  
"You what- wait, what did you say?"  
"You heard right."  
"How did you find out?"  
"I read about what happened to you."  
"That's why you were in my room?"  
"No, I was in there because I've been trying to find out why you suddenly started being so nasty to me. I wanted to know what happened to you, and found what you wrote while I was looking."  
"I guess that means you know why I've been acting the way I have then."  
"I'm not like them, Sora. I don't even like what they made me, but there's nothing I can do about it."  
"Yeah, I remember you saying already." He was quiet for a few minutes, then almost grudgingly added, "Sorry I treated you so badly."  
"Now you know how I felt when I thought you'd gone and replaced me with Donald and Goofy."  
"Yeah, but you were tricked into thinking that. This is different."  
"I know. There's something else too. You're not going to like it." He just watched me warily. "Kairi found out too. She saw me reading your tale and got curious. I kinda persuaded her to forget she went looking because of me."  
"How did you do that?"  
"It comes with the fangs," I shrugged. It's a nice, uncomplicated way of explaining it.  
"I never knew about that one."  
"Neither did I for a while. I don't do it often, and I'm not good at it either."  
"You? Admitting you're not good at something?"  
"Well don't keep pointing it out or I'll notice."  
"How did she react? To finding out again, I mean."  
"I didn't see her reaction. She doesn't know we know. You ought to talk to her about it, Sora. I think she took it better than last time, but it's just a feeling I'm getting from her."  
"Do you have that mind-reading ability I heard about?"  
"Of course, why?"  
"What does she think about it then?"  
"It doesn't work like that, Sora. I can pick up what someone's thinking right now, if I concentrate on it."  
"So you can't do it."  
"I didn't say that, I just said it didn't work that way. Besides, what she's thinking might be private."  
"You don't have to tell me if it's something like that."  
"I'll still know though. Anyway, what happened to just going and talking to her? Let her tell you what she thinks rather than getting it through me."

He took that advice the next morning. I left them to talk about it and went back out to help in the town, even managing to finish the hotel at last.  
One thing became clear. It was going to take time for me to be accepted here. Sora seemed to have gotten over his own problem with me, though we still have the odd conflict once in a while. The residents of the town were another matter, on the other hand.  
I kept true to my word and never once hunted there, a promise I've still managed to keep even now. The residents of the old vampire town don't like my visits, though thankfully no one's figured out any link to me. I'm held in suspicion, of course – even the ex-vampires that live here hold me in suspicion about anything and everything that goes wrong around the town, and will regularly send those who come investigating straight on to me. I have to think and talk very quick and carefully in those incidents to get out of them, and more than once I've been killed yet again. For some reason, despite knowing it doesn't do any good, they still do it from time to time. I've lost count of how many times people have tried to kill me like that. No matter how many times it happens though, I will never get used to how I feel when I recover from it.  
There isn't actually much more to tell. Unlike Sora, I didn't have to go through fighting off some big bad wolf, which is probably just as well since he's the only one that poses any kind of threat to me, and I doubt he's going to kill me. He might threaten to from time to time, but it's only a bit of good natured fun really. He isn't lying when he tells people that wolves play a lot, and it shows in him.  
There was one small incident very recently where Donald accidentally discovered what I am, and I discovered there and then that my ability to look into and affect other people's minds only works on humans.  
I've managed to get the Craving at least slightly under control. I can go for about a week and a half before I have to now, and that's on a good week... and a half.  
So there you have it, I guess. You now know how Sora became a werewolf, how I became a vampire, and that's really all of it.  
Oh, and no, I'm not talking about the Rite he mentioned in his tale. I know what it is, and I know neither of us will talk about it. All I'll say is that it's with good reason, and it's a serious threat to him, me, and any other vampire. The only reason others have tried it from time to time is because they thought they could control it.  
Right, that's it. I'm done. I can't write about the future until it happens.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: **Yes, I know this is a short chapter on a story I thought completed. Ideas gave me reason to actually give this one a point to it, and led to what's below.

* * *

I'm reopening this tale because a few things have happened.  
Remember I said I wasn't talking about the Rite? Well, things happened. Specifically, someone actually managed to pull it off. So Sora and I decided since it missed affecting us both, it was worth warning everyone else, and offering explanations to any of you who might have caught the effects of it – and believe me, or at least Sora, you'll know if you fall in that category.  
So now I'm bringing you up to speed and telling you about the Rite. It's being added to this one because it doesn't really go anywhere.  
The Rite doesn't have a name as such, but we know it's origins come from the cease-fire negotiated at the end of what the werewolves call the Second Great War. Sora talked about it in his tale, if you're really all that curious.  
A werewolf worked alongside a vampire, though their identities aren't known, to come up with it. What it does is even the balance between us, in one of two ways. Theoretically there's a third way, but there's no confirmation of it. I'll go into the two ways that we know didn't happen first.  
The first, and supposedly the most likely outcome is that whichever of us has more people – the vampires before this happened, as Sora was the only werewolf – loses a number of their people. They don't die, they just lose their vampiric gift. The other side, obviously, gains a number of people until the numbers are even, though it's not clear whether any of these new members would be ex-vampires, or unturned humans.  
The theoretical outcome is that both sides would die out. Enough said. I still have to put up with feeding, and Kairi still has a warm wolf to keep her company on cold nights, so obviously that hasn't happened.  
Go on, have a guess at what actually happened.  
Had your guess? See how close you were.  
The third and final outcome is that an immense amount of previously unturned humans become turned to either one side or the other. Both vampires and werewolves gained a huge boost in numbers – like the first result, up to a point they're equal.  
Sora, being the werewolf champion, has been running himself ragged teaching the new werewolves about their heritage. Kathann told him he can't be champion and a pack-leader, to his relief, but that hasn't stopped him setting new ones up left right and center.  
Me? I've been keeping out of it. I'm not proud of what I am, I don't even want to be a vampire, though you probably already know that.  
At least, that was the idea. Apparently I've also garnered a name for myself among vampires somehow, and those new vampires who don't want to take advantage of their questionable gift have been flocking to me to learn how I put up with it. At Sora's insistence, I prudently moved my growing flock away from Wolford. I promised him I wouldn't feed there, and since these vampires have seen fit to name me their lord – against my protests – they fall under that promise as far as I'm concerned.  
We set ourselves up another town, still unnamed for now. It doesn't really need one. We keep getting attacked by other clans of vampires who think I'm getting too powerful, but so far we've only had minimal losses. A very wary agreement that Sora negotiated with a new nearby werewolf pack says that we'll both leave each other alone and try to spread our mutual acceptance to others, but more importantly it also says we'll work together to protect each other – whether from werewolf, vampire or human.  
So like I said – if you happen to be unlucky enough to get caught up in the effects of the Rite, there's your explanation. If you're a werewolf, find your nearest pack or Sora if you're lucky enough to run across him. Either way it'll get you help. If you've suddenly found a craving for blood, then you're welcome among my vampires – unless you decide to go the way of the Master's vampires. In that case, be wary of pitchforks.  
Right, that's all. Sora and I will both give you periodic updates on what happens until we can finally manage a peaceful coexistance with each other, if not with humans as well. Try to be accepting of us, will you? We're people too.


	12. Chapter 12

Forgive me, everyone.  
You don't know why I'm saying that yet, but believe me, by the time I'm done you will.  
I had to do something I already hate myself for, but there was no other choice.  
Try not to judge me too quickly.

I don't know how long it's been since I last let you know what was going on, and honestly I don't actually care. But I've got to start somewhere.  
Last time I stopped by, I told you I'd been put at the head of a new family of vampires that was trying to follow in my footsteps – avoiding it as much as possible, even trying to find a cure. They never did, incidentally.  
The problem with this was that all the other feuding vampire families noticed that I was getting a much bigger portion of the vampires created when the Rite happened than they were, and decided I was getting too powerful. Naturally, they decided I had to be removed.  
With the Master's demise, the plant werewolves call Wolfsbane, the only thing besides them that can kill a vampire, began to flourish again, and with it bloomed a new black-market trade among those werewolf packs that did not listen to Sora, the vampires who wanted to bump each other off for an easy way to climb the ranks, and those humans who hated either of our kinds and just wanted to be rid of us.  
Sora did his best to keep the packs in line, but since the Rite had also turned Kairi into a werewolf too, he couldn't keep running around them all, especially not the distant ones. The packs nearest my vampire town were at least neutral when it came to us, though a few were more friendly. But most of them despite Sora's efforts retained the age old enmity between our two kinds.  
With both werewolves and vampires trying to get rid of me, we had it hard. My vampires took great losses, more from insiders that came in under various guises and surreptitiously spread the poison that started killing us.  
That same poison is just as effective on werewolves too. Remember that. Very important fact.  
In an attempt to protect me and my family of vampires, Sora ordered three pack-leaders to follow him into my town to root out every last assassin that had snuck in, find every trace of Wolfsbane, follow every trail until it was no longer in my city.  
He made a mistake in trusting the loyalty of one of those packs.  
While they were all out in force, Sora came up to my own house – which against my wishes, the other vampires had insisted on being a central castle, just like the old Vampire Central. He and Kairi both came and stayed. It was a nice reunion, at least. They'd managed to get over what I am quite some time ago, so things were friendly between us again.  
But one of the werewolves that had come along, instead of destroying the Wolfsbane he found, instead kept it, sneaked into the castle, and attempted to poison me. I still keep in the habit of eating normally even though it isn't necessary. But what I'd had brought up wasn't just for me – it was for Sora and Kairi too.  
Kairi had eaten out that day, and so said she'd eat later. The best thing she ever did, believe me.  
Since I didn't need to eat and Sora did, I sat back and let him tuck in. If you've ever seen him eat when he's really hungry, you know how he can eat a lot, really quick.  
After a while he slows down, and when he did that he started complaining of stomach cramps. This isn't unusual, even Kairi just accused him of eating too quickly at first. When it didn't go away after an entire hour we started to worry.  
Kairi was the first to suspect something was wrong, catching what she described as a 'rough, almost alien smell' to Sora's breath. I was absently reaching to the food still on the table when she realised where it was coming from and stopped me.  
"Riku, no! That's what caused it!" she warned me. I took a wary sniff, then almost choked – the smell of the only deadly poison I had to worry about is very powerful to vampires.  
"We need a cure and quickly," I thought out loud. "I don't know how quickly it works."  
"I could ask Kathann. He'd know. But..."  
"But?"  
"I've never had to do it without Sora, or at least another werewolf. I don't really like to fight, and if someone tries to get to me..."  
"I could send some of my vampires with you," I offered, but she shook her head.  
"He won't respond if you're around. He knows what you and Sora are trying to do, but he's a bit set in his ways."  
"What about the werewolves that he brought here?"  
"There's a werewolf overtone to this. Whoever planted it was a werewolf, and I'm guessing they were trying to get you, not Sora."  
"We have to do something, Kairi!"  
"I'm going to have to chance it. Don't let anyone eat from that table, Riku. Keep Sora safe until I get back."  
Easier said than done. I had the food burnt, an order which surprised the vampire I got to see to it, but once he found out why he got right on it. I also insisted that he and anyone else who went near it took extreme care, especially with the smoke that would come from it. I had no idea if the smoke would be toxic, and I wasn't going to take any chances.  
By nightfall, Sora's condition had worsened. His breathing was laboured, his temperature was so high it felt like being burned just to touch him, and he drifted in and out of painful consciousness sporadically. The mighty werewolf champion, my best friend, was deathly ill, and there wasn't anything we could do about it until Kairi came back.  
I ignored sleep that night to keep an eye on him, doing anything I could. Any vampire that knew anything to relieve Sora's conditions was sent for, anything that would make him even slightly better tried. But he's a werewolf, and natural remedies don't work too well on them. I even called in a vet, someone better suited to working with true wolves, and even they couldn't help.  
Kairi did not return by morning, and with Sora rapidly slipping away from us, I was starting to worry. I send all three packs running on his behalf, borrowing his authority because he was so unwell. One pack was sent to find Kairi, the second Kathann, and the third to spread the word that I needed a cure and fast.  
No responses came. No werewolves returned to my town, no vampires came in. Not even to try and get rid of me. News spread quickly that someone had managed to poison Sora, and the rumours went around like wildfire.  
Naturally as a vampire, and his host, I was the chief suspect among the werewolves. Most vampires who were against me did everything they could to enforce that. Even my own vampires started to abandon me, going their own way.  
So I did the only thing I could. The poison was in his bloodstream. Had he been human, had he not been my friend, I could have saved him simply by turning him. But he'd already been turned once, into a werewolf – who knew what would happen if I tried to do the opposite? Maybe it wouldn't matter, and if I tried it would kill him. But I had to do something.  
I ordered everyone out, locked the door and then I bit him, drained him of his blood like I would have anyone else. What I was doing meant that the normally sweet taste of the blood felt come back foul instead.  
I knew whatever the result, I'd need to wait before I'd know how it had gone. Thanks to the efforts of my own vampires, we knew this was about ten minutes. These ten minutes crawled past like an eternity. I counted them using my pulse – I'd just fed, so I had one for long enough to keep time with it, at least. I had to try not to think about just who it was I'd just bitten to get that pulse though.  
With more apprehension than I've ever felt before, I put a hand on Sora's chest. He still had laboured breathing, but he was at least breathing, allowing me to sigh in relief. I hadn't killed him. What's more, I could already feel his temperature had dropped, and I could hear his breathing start to become more regular.  
But that wasn't what I was worried about – no vampire has ever bitten a werewolf before. No one knew what to expect, what would come of it. Until now.  
Using the strength I had from being a vampire, I pulled his teeth apart. I had to be sure of what I'd done. Sure enough, as soon as I got his mouth open enough, the fangs appeared. A check in the eyes confirmed it; Sora was a vampire. But was he a werewolf too? Had I taken one gift and replaced it with another?  
I had no way to be sure. Either he was a vampire, or he was both. Until he recovered or the next full moon, I wouldn't be able to find out. But he couldn't stay here, not with both werewolf and vampire avoiding the place.  
I had several vampires that were already leaving me take him with them and warned them of what I'd done. I insisted that they not tell anyone, not even Sora until they were certain of what he'd become.  
Then I found the housekeeper for my castle and left him with separate notes for Kairi and Sora in case they ever turned up. I doubted it, but I figured it was better to take precautions.  
With that seen to, I turned my back on the town and left it in the hands of those who remained there. I couldn't face Kairi after what I'd done, and I didn't want to be near Sora either – but I had to know what I'd done, so I followed the vampires I'd entrusted him to, keeping to a safe distance so they wouldn't notice me.  
It was two days later when Sora came to. He recognised the company of the vampires, but true to form did not lash out at them, or even treat them badly. He asked what he was doing there, and they told him; he'd been poisoned and I'd done my best to cure him. They told him he might not be the same, but he gave me another sigh of relief when he turned into a wolf and back.  
I haven't seen Sora since then. Who knows what he is now. Both a werewolf and a vampire... I don't know if he's discovered what I gave him or how he reacted to it. I dread to think what Kairi would say.  
I don't know what I'm going to do now. I'm not trusted any more, not since both sides think I'm responsible for trying to poison Sora. Sora and Kairi... well, you've no doubt gathered my view there.  
Right now, I'm laying low and trying not to attract attention to myself.  
I hear rumours from time to time, suggesting that Sora seems to be going about his life as normal, but I also hear rumours that speak of an unknown vampire that's leaving both werewolf and human alike sucked dry with only a short note that reads 'sorry'.  
I suspect a connection. But I don't want to go and verify it. It sounds like Sora is as reluctant to accept his vampiric gift as I was.  
So for what I've created in him... I'm sorry.  
And to Sora and Kairi... forgive me. I did what I felt I had to.  
Guess I'm not everyone's favourite vampire anymore, huh?


End file.
